EU and member states say embassies stay in Kyiv after Russian threat of strikes

Why it matters

By singling out the presence of foreign embassies in its threat, Moscow raised the prospect of strikes on diplomatic targets in violation of the Vienna Conventions. The EU and member states answered with a coordinated public signal of staying in Kyiv, tying the diplomatic standoff to the broader sanctions and military-support track for Ukraine. The gap between that public posture and The Guardian's reporting of private relocation planning is itself a notable part of the story.

What happened

On 3 October, Russia's Foreign Ministry published a statement calling on foreigners, including diplomatic mission personnel, to leave Kyiv and warning of new massive strikes on the capital, framed as retaliation for Ukrainian attacks on Russian military facilities. The ministry said responsibility for any negative consequences would lie with those who ignored the warning.

The following day, EU Ambassador to Ukraine Kateryna Maternova said publicly that the EU Delegation and all 25 EU member-state embassies in Kyiv are staying. She posted on X that the threats will not stop European support for Ukraine, referenced the Vienna Conventions governing diplomatic missions, and described the Russian warnings as a sign of frustration over the lack of battlefield advantage. European Commission spokesman Christian Wigand said the EU delegation in Kyiv continues to operate unchanged, that the EU will continue to support Ukraine and increase pressure on Russia, and that the EU is working on its largest-ever sanctions package against Russia. Estonia's and Poland's foreign ministries also said their embassies remain in Kyiv.

How Ukrainian sources describe it

Ukrainian sources centered the story on EU Ambassador Maternova's statement and X post that the EU Delegation and all EU member-state embassies are staying, presenting the EU's public posture as firm support for Ukraine in the face of Russian intimidation. They highlighted President Zelensky's 3 October Reuters interview in which he said the Armed Forces will intensify attacks on Russian oil refineries as a direct Ukrainian response to the escalation. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's denial of Western media reports about embassy relocation plans was framed as evidence that the public position of staying holds, even as The Guardian's reporting of private contingency planning was acknowledged.

Where reporting differs

Sources disagree on whether Western embassies are preparing to leave Kyiv. The Guardian reported that diplomats were privately developing plans to relocate to Lviv or eastern Poland, while Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhiy Tykhyi said the ministry had received no such notifications and EU Ambassador Maternova said the EU Delegation and all 25 EU member-state embassies are staying. Sources also differ on the date of a previous similar Russian warning to diplomats about Kyiv, with some placing it in May 2025 and others in May 2026, and several noting that, unlike in 2022, diplomatic missions did not leave the capital after that earlier warning.

Background

Russia has issued similar threats to foreign diplomats about Kyiv before, including in late May, after which diplomatic missions did not leave the capital. The EU has approved defence procurement plans for Ukraine totalling 28.3 billion euros this year, with a separate 6.6 billion euros in military assistance, and on 28 September imposed new sanctions in response to the deportation of Ukrainian children. The EU has also recently condemned Russian nuclear threats toward NATO member states following a Russian document to NATO saying the full arsenal, including nuclear weapons, could be used if the Alliance attempted to isolate the Kaliningrad region. Russia struck the Northern Bridge in Kyiv on the morning of Maternova's announcement, a context point cited in several of the articles.