Russia will shutter German cultural centres across the country, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday (September 3, 2026).
A drone laden with explosives was found near a Ukrainian plane at Leipzig/Halle Airport on August 4 and later defused. The EU has slapped almost two dozen packages of sanctions on Russia over the war in Ukraine, hitting more than 3,000 officials, oligarchs and entities including banks, energy companies and drone makers. The EU was already preparing to impose more travel bans and asset freezes on another 1,600 people, Mr.
The move comes after Berlin blamed Moscow for an attempted attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport and announced the closure of both the Russian Consulate in Bonn and the Russian House cultural centre in the German capital. Mr. Speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Mr. The airport is a major international freight hub used for providing support to Ukraine. Mr. Putin has dismissed the allegations, saying Berlin wants to distract from its own failings and dissatisfaction among voters. Mr.
Lavrov said that cultural centres belonging to Germany’s Goethe-Institut would be closed in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg, adding that any other response would show a lack of “self-respect” on Russia’s part. Lavrov said that Germany “could not have failed to understand” that the closure of Russian House would “signify the end of their cultural presence in Russia. Any proof being offered “has been planted,” Mr. Putin said. Kallas said. Germany insisted it was “not at war” but had become a “daily target” of the Kremlin’s hybrid campaign. But German Foreign Minister Johan Wadephul said Berlin had carefully prepared its response “and now Russia must live with these consequences. He called on Russia “to show that it is also ready for reasonable talks and negotiations, particularly regarding the situation in Ukraine.”
