KUWAIT: Kuwait’s ministry of foreign affairs on Friday expressed deep regret over the damage sustained by Qatar’s embassy due to the shelling that targeted Kyiv. In a statement, the ministry reaffirmed Kuwait’s firm and principled position calling for the resolution of crises through dialogue, adherence to diplomatic channels and support for all international efforts aimed at resolving the crisis peacefully, in accordance with international law and the United Nations Charter.
The ministry emphasized the importance of complying with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, particularly regarding the need to ensure the protection of diplomatic missions, their personnel and premises, and to prevent exposing them to the risks of armed conflict, thereby guaranteeing respect for international law and host states’ obligations toward foreign missions.
Qatar said on Friday that its embassy in the Ukrainian capital was damaged during strikes the night before but that its staff were unharmed. “The State of Qatar expresses its deep regret over the damage sustained by its embassy building in Ukraine as a result of the strikes on the capital, Kyiv, last night. It also confirms that none of its diplomats or embassy staff were harmed,” the foreign ministry said in a statement shared on X.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Friday a “massive” Russian night-time attack on Ukraine damaged 20 residential buildings in Kyiv and its suburbs, as well as Qatar’s embassy. Russia hit Ukraine as temperatures plunged to freezing with its latest barrage of missiles — including the hypersonic Oreshnik — as Moscow rejected Western proposals to end its almost four-year invasion.
Kyiv was the worst hit in the strikes, Ukraine said, with four people killed and at least 25 wounded. “Twenty residential buildings alone were damaged,” Zelensky said, adding that “a building of the Embassy of Qatar was damaged last night by a Russian drone”. “Qatar, a state that does so much to mediate with Russia in order to secure the release of prisoners of war and civilians held in Russian prisons,” he said. Russia denied targeting the area around the mission and claimed it was hit by a Ukrainian air defense missile. – Agencies
