The Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s claim that Russia “forcibly deported” 1.6 million Ukrainians is a “fiction”.
Blinken tweeted on Wednesday that Russia must end “filtration” activities in Ukraine, which have “disappeared, arrested, or forcibly deported up to 1.6 million innocent Ukrainians.”
“This is a lie,” Zakharova told the Solovyov Live show, adding that it is impossible to imagine how can a country distribute its passports forcefully.
In another context, Russia is preparing a response to the European Union’s explanation of sanctions and their impact on transit to the Kaliningrad region, said Zakharova on Thursday.
Earlier in the day, the European Commission issued clarifications on the restrictions, stating that only road transportation of sanctioned Russian cargo is forbidden, while rail transit is permitted subject to sufficient controls.
“At the moment, we are carefully studying the explanations provided by the European Commission, analyzing them from the point of view of the priority task – the comprehensive life support of the Kaliningrad region,” Zakharova said in a statement, published by the Foreign Ministry.
According to the statement, “This decision, which removes restrictions on a certain range of products transported by rail, is a sign of realism and common sense. Although we still have questions about the content of this document.”
Source: Agencies (edited by Al-Manar English Website)
