FILE PHOTO: Spokeswoman of Russia's Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova attends the annual press conference held by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, January 18, 2024. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
(Reuters) - Russia on Saturday condemned as a provocation a drone attack on a military facility of pro-Russian separatists in Moldova's breakaway Transdniestria region and called for an investigation.
A kamikaze drone hit a facility belonging to the separatist authority's defence ministry six km (four miles) from the border with Ukraine, the region's security ministry said on Friday.
Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 sparked fears that Moscow might seek to sweep west through southern Ukraine all the way to Transdniestria, linking up with its garrison there. Those fears faded as Kyiv's troops beat back Russian forces to the eastern side of the Dnipro river.
The nearest front lines lie around 200 km (125 miles) from eastern Moldova.
"We regard this incident as yet another provocation aimed at exacerbating the already tense situation around Transdniestria," Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.
"We expect a thorough investigation into all the circumstances of what happened. We trust that those behind this reckless action will fully realize its dangerous consequences."
Transdniestria's security ministry said a criminal case had been opened.
The incident was the second of its kind in less than a month. In March, separatist Transdniestrian authorities said a drone strike had destroyed a helicopter in the region.
Moldova said it was studying images from the latest incident but it had no access to an area controlled by the separatist authorities. It said the incident could be a deliberate attempt to sow panic and draw attention to the enclave.
(Reporting by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Ros Russell)
