BERLIN, August 22. /TASS/. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock expressed her conviction that Ukraine has the right to self-defense, given that Russia has allegedly been attacking civilian targets in the country, in remarks at a news conference following her meeting on Tuesday with her Estonian counterpart, Margus Tsahkna.

When asked whether she thinks drone attacks on Russian cities may escalate things, Germany’s top diplomat said: "Russia invaded Ukraine, therefore Ukraine has the right mandated by the UN Charter to protect its territory and its people."

She also claimed that "Russia has been bombarding civilian targets." "Ukraine is protecting itself under international law," Baerbock maintained.

Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov underscored that Russia’s Armed Forces never targeted civilian facilities in Ukraine and that all the strikes were aimed at destroying military infrastructure. Lavrov also pointed to the repeated placement by Ukrainian units of heavy military equipment in residential areas and on civilian premises. Moreover, Lavrov said, Ukraine’s drone strikes have primarily been targeted exclusively at civilian facilities.