"We remain in Kyiv": EU embassies respond to Russian threats

What Moscow said

On Saturday, 3 October, Russia’s Foreign Ministry again called on foreign diplomats and citizens to leave Kyiv and not to travel to Ukraine, warning of new “massive” strikes, AFP reported (via The Straits Times). The statement said “not everyone has heeded these warnings” and that “responsibility for any potential negative consequences rests entirely with those who ignore this warning”. Moscow issued a similar warning in May — and leaders of countries backing Ukraine still travelled to Kyiv.

The embassies’ response

The German Embassy said on Facebook that, together with other heads of diplomatic missions, it viewed the Russian Foreign Ministry’s threat “with concern”. “Russia must abide by the Vienna Convention and international humanitarian law. We remain in Kyiv,” the embassy said.

Italy’s ambassador to Ukraine, Carlo Formosa, published an almost identical position: Russia is obliged to respect the Vienna Convention and international humanitarian law, and the embassy is staying in the capital.

Estonia’s Foreign Ministry wrote on X: “Russia is trying to intimidate foreign diplomats in Kyiv and undermine support for Ukraine. It will not work.” It added that the threats only strengthen Tallinn’s resolve to support Ukraine. Poland’s Foreign Ministry, according to Ukrinform, said it has no plans to change how its embassy in Kyiv operates.

The EU’s position

EU Ambassador to Ukraine Katarina Mathernova told Ukrinform she did not know of any embassy leaving Kyiv — “certainly not any of the EU embassies”. She is in contact with the missions of 25 member states; together with the EU Delegation and the EU Advisory Mission, they are staying in the capital. Her team constantly assesses the security situation, she said, but Russia’s latest threats do not change their approach.

She called the Kremlin’s rhetoric a sign of frustration at the lack of battlefield success: “He’s increasing rhetoric and threats both against civilians and diplomats and against the EU countries.”

Rumours denied

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry had earlier denied reports that unnamed Western embassies planned to evacuate staff to Lviv or even further west, to eastern Poland. Mathernova told Ukrinform she was not sure what sources The Guardian, which reported such plans, had used.

During his meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on 4 October, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had “openly tried to intimidate” partners “with direct threats, constant alerts and shelling, so that partners would not be here, in the capital”. He thanked Merz for the visit and for the German Embassy continuing its work.

Merz: “We won’t be intimidated”

The most visible response to the threats was the German chancellor’s own visit to Kyiv on 4 October — the day after the Russian statement. According to Reuters, Merz said Germany would not be intimidated into dropping its support for Ukraine, while air-raid sirens sounded repeatedly during his time in the capital.

Why it matters

Embassies in the capital are more than a symbol. They handle consular help, coordinate military and humanitarian support and maintain contact with the government. A mass departure of diplomats would signal that Kyiv is unsafe for partners — which, in the view of Mathernova and European foreign ministries, is exactly what Moscow is trying to achieve. A joint response citing the Vienna Convention shows European capitals are not prepared to accept that logic.