Russia demands apology from Ireland after man drives through gates of embassy in Dublin

Russia demanded an apology from Ireland on Tuesday after an Irish man drove a truck through the Russian Embassy in Dublin to protest the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Brian McElduff, the Irish ambassador to Russia, and demanded an apology for the incident, according to a statement on the website translated by Google.

“We emphasized that the demonstrators who surrounded our Embassy adopted, in fact, the tactics widely used by terrorists,” the statement said. “They demanded from the leadership of Ireland an official apology for what had happened and full compensation for the damage caused.”

“We also expect the authorities of this country to conduct an objective investigation and punish the perpetrators,” the statement continued.

On Monday, Desmond Wisley drove his truck through the gates of the Russian Embassy and handed out photos to other protesters showing what Russian forces were doing in Ukraine.

“I want the ambassador and his colleagues to leave this country, leave this free country,” Wisely told the crowd, according to the Irish Times. “It’s about time we stood up.”

Wisley was arrested and the Russian Embassy in Ireland condemned the incident, calling it “insanity” and saying a gate was torn off at the embassy.

Officials said they would contact Irish authorities to discuss safety measures.

“The incident is cause of extreme concern,” the embassy wrote in a statement on Twitter. “We believe that no people of sound mind could support such senseless and barbaric actions.”

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sparked mass protests across the globe and has drawn widespread condemnation.

More than two million refugees have fled Ukraine and reports are circulating of Russian forces shelling cities and cutting off humanitarian corridors. The International Court of Justice is expected to hear a trial on Russian human rights abuses.

Ireland and Russia also clashed in February after Russian naval exercises were planned near the Irish exclusive economic zone. Russia eventually moved the drills outside of the zone.