MOSCOW

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday that Ukraine's attacks on tankers and ships in the Black Sea are intended to disrupt the peace process.

Zakharova told a news conference in St. Petersburg that Ukraine ignored Türkiye's and Kazakhstan's reactions and continued its attempts to drown Russian vessels.

"Apparently, Kyiv ignored the unequivocal reaction from Ankara and Astana, sanctioning on December 1 a new attack using unmanned boats on a Russian commercial vessel, which was located 80 nautical miles from the Black Sea coast of Türkiye," she said.

Though the crew and the ship were not significantly harmed, Moscow considers these "terrorist attacks," she added.

On Dec. 2, the Russian vessel Midvolga 2 was attacked by a drone 80 nautical miles from the Turkish coast, sustaining minor damage. Earlier, on Nov. 28, the tankers Kairos and Virat were attacked 28 and 38 nautical miles from the Turkish coast, respectively, resulting in a fire and hull damage.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated on Dec. 1 that such attacks signal an alarming escalation and cannot be justified.

Regarding the issue of peace talks with Kyiv, Zakharova said Moscow's priority is to achieve peace by addressing the root causes, not who leads the Ukrainian delegation.

Commenting on EU discussions aimed at seizing Russia's frozen assets, she said Moscow is preparing a response and that the measures will be "tough."

"Any illegal actions with our state reserves and assets will not remain without the most severe reaction. There will be such a reaction from our side, and, of course, this situation will not remain without a reaction from the world community," she warned.

She claimed that the EU uses "almost all means," including "blatant threats, blackmail, and fakes."

According to her, "The desire to harm Russia obscures everything literally. No one in the EU even hides that there are no legal grounds for such actions. This is theft, which has no other qualification."

Concerning Denmark's plans to open a factory for Ukraine's armed forces, the spokeswoman said Moscow will take necessary measures.

Regarding an EU corruption scandal, Zakharova alleged that European countries are linked to Ukraine through "corruption chains."

"These are unified corruption chains, and now the latest facts revealed within the Brussels bureaucracy are vivid confirmation of this. Apparently, there was a whole team working there, and not just (former head of European diplomacy Federica) Mogherini," she said.

She also criticized the Faroe Islands for joining sanctions against Russia, stating this would force Moscow to consider a number of adequate countermeasures.

Turning to the Middle East, Zakharova said Moscow is discussing the tense situation on the Israel-Lebanon border.

"We are extremely concerned that there have been increasing reports of Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreements that came into force in November 2024, and we regularly inform all parties involved of our principled position on the need to avoid steps that could lead to an escalation of violence and another round of armed conflict," she stressed.

Zakharova pledged to continue efforts in cooperation with regional and international partners in the interests of sustainable and long-term stabilization of the situation around Lebanon and in the Middle East as a whole.