Russian Outrage Over Suspected Paint Attack on Swedish Diplomatic Missions

Russia is expressing outrage towards Sweden following a new paint attack on the country's diplomatic missions in Stockholm. "The Swedish authorities bear full responsibility," writes the Russian embassy.

"There was red paint on the building, and we are investigating vandalism," says police spokesperson Robert Sennerdal.

Russia's trade representation on Lidingö near Stockholm was subjected to a paint attack at 3:30 AM on Saturday, according to the Russian embassy's website.

"A drone dropped a container of paint on the ground in front of the main entrance... Similar assaults on Russia's embassy and trade representation have been occurring for over a year," the Russian embassy states.

The embassy accuses Sweden of being unable or unwilling to investigate the attacks and demands that Swedish authorities investigate previous incidents and prevent further assaults.

"Sweden Bears Full Responsibility"

"We have repeatedly urged the Swedish police and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to prevent such attacks... This seemingly never had any effect, raising a legitimate question of whether the Swedish authorities cannot or do not want to investigate these incidents," the embassy continues.

"Stockholm must realize that it is the Swedish authorities who bear full responsibility for the development of this situation."

The police in Stockholm confirm that they have received a report of vandalism from the Russian embassy. The alarm was raised at 4:33 AM on Saturday.

"A patrol went to the trade representation on Ringvägen in Lidingö. It was confirmed that there was red paint on the building. We filed a report of vandalism," says Robert Sennerdal, spokesperson for the Stockholm police region.

"We are investigating the matter. There are no suspects," he adds.

Similar attacks occurred against the Russian embassy on June 17 this year.

Over 15 Attacks

In May this year, Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, sharply criticized Sweden, stating that the Russian embassy operates under "war-like conditions," as reported by TV4.

"This was the fifteenth drone attack since May 2024. This means that illegal actions are committed once a month or even more often—with apparent consent, or possibly approval, from Swedish authorities," she told the Russian news agency Tass.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' press service writes in a comment:

"Swedish authorities have an obligation to protect diplomatic missions and diplomatic personnel according to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. That an embassy in Sweden is subjected to vandalism is serious. Further questions are referred to the Police Authority."