MOSCOW, July 11. /TASS/. The photo and video evidence that has been made public proves that the Okhmatdet children's hospital in Kiev was hit by a NASAMS air defense missile, said Russian envoy to the OSCE, Maxim Buyakevich.
"Numerous publications of photos and video footage from Kiev confirm with certainty that the destruction of the Okhmatdet children's hospital complex was due to the fall of a missile that had been fired with a NASAMS system, which was deployed within city limits in violation of international humanitarian law," he said at a meeting of the organization's permanent council. "The fact that it was a NASAMS missile is confirmed not only by the appearance and proportions of the projectile, the tail section and the fin assembly, but also by the shrapnel damage to surrounding objects that was inflicted by the explosion of its warhead and is typical of anti-aircraft missiles. It could be seen on cars parked near the children's hospital complex, as well as on the walls of the hospital building."
"NASAMS systems are most actively supplied to the Kiev regime by Norway," Buyakevich said.
The envoy also said Russia firmly rejects the logic of the OSCE’s Malta presidency, which "organized a special meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council on July 9 in order to please a well-known group of anti-Russian nations, where unfounded and unproven accusations were made against Russia."
"It was weird to see the crocodile tears of representatives from the US, Britain, Canada and other Western countries that are responsible for the suffering and deaths of thousands of children in the conflicts these nations unleashed over the past decades, primarily in the Middle East," Buyakevich said.
Ukraine accused Russia of striking civilian facilities in Kiev, such as the Okhmatdet hospital. Moscow denied these allegations as having no basis in reality, and said instead that the hospital was hit by a Ukrainian air defense missile.
The Russian Defense Ministry said that in retaliation to Ukrainian attempts to attack energy facilities inside Russia, a precision strike was carried out on July 8 against Ukrainian defense industry sites and airbases, and the goals of the strike were accomplished. The Defense Ministry said photos and videos from the scene confirmed that the destruction was caused by a falling Ukrainian air defense missile.