More "dirty bomb" and "combat mosquitoes" lies may indicate new provocations by Russia - Ukraine's Ambassador to OSCE

Yevhen Tsymbalyuk, Ukraine's Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna, made the statement during a meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, Ukrinform quoted him as saying.

According to him, Russian leader Vladimir Putin's recent statements about his intention to create a "sanitary strip" in Ukraine indicate that Moscow has not changed its goals. Instead, it still seeks to dismantle Ukrainian statehood.

"Moscow's intensification of the old disinformation campaign about the "dirty bomb" - a lie that the IAEA has already dispelled in its statement yesterday - and about the combat mosquitoes may indicate possible new provocations," said Tsymbalyuk.

He emphasized that in view of such genocidal statements, the destruction of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and reports of mining of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and the Crimean Titan plant in Armyansk are "a stern reminder that all necessary measures must be taken to prevent new terrorist acts and end the impunity of the Russian regime."

The Ukrainian diplomat recalled that on June 16, during the visit of African leaders to the capital of Ukraine, Russia launched one of the largest missile attacks on Kyiv. This, he said, "eloquently demonstrates that Russia seeks war, not peace."

Tsymbalyuk also added that there is no alternative to the liberation of all Ukrainian lands from Russian occupation. This is clearly indicated by the crimes committed by Russia on a daily basis.

"Restoration of Ukraine's sovereignty in Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Luhansk regions and over the Crimean peninsula is the only way to protect the people who live there. We will do this gradually and systematically, step by step," the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the OSCE emphasized.

Russia's disinformation campaign

Earlier, Russia's propaganda media spread fake news that "Russia's foreign intelligence service received data on the order of the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine to send a batch of irradiated fuel from the Rivne NPP for reprocessing." At the same time, Russian media noted that this fuel was moved in two containers to the storage site in Chornobyl. According to them, the IAEA was not notified of this. Russian propaganda also claimed that such actions "can be explained by Ukraine's intentions to continue working on a dirty nuclear bomb."

Instead, the IAEA denied this information. The Agency stated that it had been informed in advance by the Ukrainian side about the transfer of spent nuclear fuel from the Rivne NPP to the Chornobyl NPP. This process was monitored by the Agency's experts, who have implemented safeguards to ensure the secure handling and storage of the fuel.

• On June 16, 2022, Russia published further "evidence" of the existence of mythical biolaboratories in Ukraine, where Ukraine and the United States allegedly created viruses that could be transmitted by mosquitoes.

• On November 8, 2022, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov commented on the statement by Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya about Ukrainian drones carrying infected mosquitoes.