Kallas says US embassy left Kyiv, Ukraine’s foreign ministry refutes it

Ukraine's foreign ministry has denied a claim by EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas that the US embassy left Kyiv amid Russian threats of new strikes on the capital, Suspilne reported.

The dispute over the US position comes after Washington declined to join nearly 50 UN member states that condemned Russia's threats against embassies in Ukraine, and days after Russia carried out its most extensive strike on Kyiv of the war.

Conflicting accounts over the embassy

Kallas told journalists that all embassies but one had remained in Ukraine and that European diplomats were staying while American staff had departed. "But yes, all European diplomats are staying. The Americans, though, left," she said. She added that Russia was intensifying attacks it described as terrorism because it was failing on the battlefield.

Ukraine's foreign ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi said information about the US embassy's departure did not correspond to reality. Presidential spokesman Serhii Nykyforov said US partners were preparing a response and would likely refute Kallas's statement.

Russian threats to the capital

On 24 May, Russian forces carried out one of the largest strike on Kyiv by number of damaged sites since the start of the full-scale invasion, hitting about 300 locations including residential buildings, museums, state institutions, schools, and the Lukianivska metro station. Authorities reported 91 people injured and two killed.

On 25 May, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said strikes on Kyiv had been and would be delivered in response. The ministry later said it was beginning systematic strikes on military-industrial sites in the capital, named targets linked to drone design and production and "decision-making centers and command posts," and urged foreigners to leave. It repeated a false claim that Ukraine had attacked a university in Starobilsk and accused Kyiv of violating the Geneva Conventions.

International response

Nearly 50 UN member states, including European countries, Japan, and South Korea, condemned Russia's threats against embassies in Ukraine in a joint statement, which the US did not sign. France's foreign ministry spokesman Pascal Confavreux said evacuation was out of the question.

EU Ambassador to Ukraine Katarína Mathernová said diplomats and foreign nationals did not intend to leave Kyiv despite Russian threats of another massive strike on the city.