French Foreign Ministry to summon Russian ambassador to condemn Russian strike on Beryslav that killed volunteers

France’s Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs will summon Alexei Meshkov, Russia's ambassador to France, on Monday, 5 February, to express its condemnation of the Russian strikes that killed two French humanitarian workers in Ukraine last week.

As reported by BFMTV channel, Paris "will also condemn any continued disinformation campaigns targeting France," the same source added, days after the French Ministry of the Armed Forces revealed a "coordinated Russian manoeuvre" to spread false information concerning France.

Tensions between France and Russia have recently risen, with Moscow accusing France of "militaristic madness" following the announcement of new arms sales to Kyiv.

France also expects to be targeted by a new wave of Russian disinformation, while President Emmanuel Macron plans to visit Ukraine in February.

On the evening of 1 February, Oleksandr Prokudin, Head of Kherson Oblast Military Administration, reported that two French volunteers had been killed and three others injured in a Russian attack on the town of Beryslav. An activist in the organisation's Ukrainian office was also injured.

French President Emmanuel Macron and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy reacted to the incident.

Paris condemned Moscow's act of "barbarism". The Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation on Friday evening.