PARIS, February 24. /TASS/. Russian diplomats are in contact with French officials to obtain information about the attackers of the Russian Consulate General in Marseille, the Russian Embassy in France said in a statement.
"We are currently in contact with local law enforcement agencies in order to find out the identities of the attackers and take other necessary measures," the statement said.
The consulate staff suffered no injures, and no material damage was caused in the incident, according to the embassy. Also, Russian diplomats said they had asked the French authorities before the attack to enhance security measures near Russian foreign offices.
Russia’s Consulate General told TASS earlier that unidentified individuals had thrown three objects onto the premises of the diplomatic mission, and two of them exploded. According to preliminary information, there were no casualties, and no damage was reported to the Consulate General building.
Police sealed off the area around the consulate and are checking a suspicious car parked nearby. According to La Provence, bomb disposal units conducted controlled detonations of suspicious objects left after the attack.
Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told TASS that the explosions "bear all the signs of a terrorist attack." The Foreign Ministry demands that France conduct a swift and comprehensive investigation and make steps to bolster the security of Russian diplomatic missions.
The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service announced on February 19 that Ukraine was considering the option of carrying out terrorist attacks against Russian diplomatic missions across Europe, particularly in Germany, the Baltic states and Scandinavia. According to the agency, the Ukrainians could also pick Slovakia or Hungary for such efforts, as that would additionally benefit Kiev by discrediting the EU countries that hold different views on the conflict in Ukraine.