Anti-Semitic riots in Dagestan: Kyiv reacts to accusations of Ukraine’s involvement

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine rejected Russia's accusations of the country’s involvement in anti-Semitic riots at the Makhachkala Airport.

This was announced by MFA spokesman Oleg Nikolenko on Facebook, Ukrinform reports.

The diplomat emphasized that the events in Makhachkala reflect the deep-rooted anti-Semitism among Russian elites and society, while threats to exterminate Jews are the result of the work of Russian state propaganda, which for decades has cultivated enmity among Russians for other peoples. Nikolenko also recalled that not so long ago, President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also issued some offensive anti-Semitic statements.

"The accusation voiced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation against Ukraine of involvement in the events in Dagestan is an attempt to shift responsibility,” said the spokesman.

He expressed his conviction that the international community should respond decisively to manifestations of racial hatred in Russia and anywhere around the world.

As reported, on Sunday evening, an anti-Semitic riot unfolded at the Makhachkala Airport in the capital of Dagestan. The mob, enraged by the arrival of a passenger jet from Israel, stormed the terminal and rushed onto the tarmac in search of Jews.

President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine then stated that the storming of the airport by an angry mob was part of the widespread enmity toward other peoples observed in Russia, which is promoted at the state level.

The Russian Foreign Ministry decried the pogrom in Makhachkala as an act of externally plotted provocation, putting blame on Ukraine.