Vassily Nebenzia, Russia's UN envoy, has criticized Kaja Kallas for overlooking Ukrainian crimes

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas' claim that Russian civilians "are not dying" in the Ukraine conflict is erroneous, Russia's envoy to the UN Vassily Nebenzia has said.

During a UN Security Council meeting on Tuesday, Nebenzia denounced Kallas's remarks from February as "immoral assertions" from an official peddling "fantasies." He said that in 2024 alone, Ukrainian military action resulted in the death of 809 Russian civilians, including 51 children.

Those killings constituted "real crimes" and not a "theatrical performance like Bucha that was staged by the Ukrainian authorities" to garner Western support, Nebenzia stated. Kiev has cited claims that Russian forces had committed a "massacre" in the town in 2022 to justify its decision to abandon peace talks, while Russia contends that the evidence was fabricated.

Speaking at a panel discussion during the Munich Security Conference, Kallas claimed that the two nations take radically different positions: "The difference is that Russian civilians are not dying. I mean Russian children and women are not dying, it's soldiers on the ground" who do, she stated.

In response, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova labeled Kallas's comments as evidence of the "degradation" of senior EU officials, asserting that the senior diplomat has reached a new low in "cynicism and immorality."

"How can one seriously negotiate with people who have declared lies as their official position?" Zakharova questioned.

Kallas, known for her hawkish stance towards Russia, became the EU's foreign policy and security chief last December after stepping down as Estonia's prime minister under public pressure.