Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s answer to a media question during a joint news conference with Hissein Brahim Taha, Secretary-General of the Organisation of Islamic Conference, Moscow, October 24, 2022

Question: During his recent telephone conversations with his colleagues from France, Britain and Turkiye, Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu expressed concern over potential provocations by Ukraine involving a “dirty nuclear bomb.” Now the Foreign Minister of Ukraine said the IAEA Director General decided to send experts to Ukraine after Russia’s warning about Kiev making a “dirty bomb.” What is the Foreign Ministry’s response to this? What practical actions is Russia going to take in this respect?

Sergey Lavrov: After Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu’s telephone conversations yesterday with his colleagues from France, Britain and Turkiye, as well as Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin, we took the necessary steps to formally raise this issue with international agencies, primarily the UN in New York. Today, our representatives will deal with this issue, hoping for an engaged, professional discussion of the issues we raised.

We know which institutions and research centres in Ukraine have the technology to produce a “dirty bomb.” We double-checked this information through the appropriate channels. This is not idle suspicion. We have serious grounds to believe that such things may be planned. Mr Shoigu agreed with several of his counterparts to hold additional consultations on this issue at the professional level.

We are seeing the  media response in the West. It is no surprise for us because  it is entirely in keeping with the West’s reckless support for its lackey Vladimir Zelensky. The West has issued him an indulgence to commit any Russophobic action, and not only statements but also bombing civilian facilities, killing civilians and much more.

As for Dmitry Kuleba’s statement about IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi’s consent to send a mission of experts, I don’t have any information about this. I know that Mr Grossi received this request. While preparing to depart on a foreign trip, he promised to review it. We know how much our Ukrainian colleagues like to distort facts. Having announced that the IAEA had ostensibly already agreed to send experts, Mr Kuleba said in the same statement that, unlike Russia, Ukraine is acting transparently and has nothing to hide. To put it mildly, this is not an accurate retelling of the “case history” and the facts that have already become public. Take, for instance, the notorious provocation in Bucha. It occurred in late March of this year. Since then we have repeatedly turned to everyone possible for help, seeking information on the names of the people who were killed. Their bodies were put on display for the whole world as “evidence of atrocities” allegedly committed by the Russian military. A month ago, I asked UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to get a list of their names. No response. This is further evidence of how “transparent” Ukraine is and whether it truly has “nothing to hide.”

As for “dirty nuclear bombs,” we will certainly get to the bottom of this. It is in our vital interest to prevent such a terrible provocation. What our Western partners say in public in their reckless support for Mr Zelensky and his regime does not necessarily mean that they will treat the information we provided irresponsibly in their internal discussions.