Russian authorities have launched a criminal investigation into an alleged assault on a freelance journalist, reportedly by an employee of the British embassy, the Russian Interior Ministry

announced on Friday.

According to officials, the 23-year-old journalist claimed she suffered "physical and moral injury" while attempting to interview British diplomats at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport.

"While performing her professional duties, an unidentified man, believed to be a British embassy employee meeting the delegation, pushed her, causing her to lose balance," the ministry stated.

The Russian government accused the British embassy of ignoring police requests to identify the alleged assailant and clarify his diplomatic status. Officials vowed to ensure accountability regardless of the individual’s nationality or position.

Reuters has sought a response from Britain’s Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office.

This incident follows Britain’s decision to expel a Russian diplomat in response to Moscow’s expulsion of a British diplomat last November. Russia had accused the diplomat of espionage, a claim London firmly denied.

Diplomatic relations between Britain and Russia have deteriorated sharply since the onset of the Ukraine war, with the UK imposing multiple sanctions and supplying arms to Ukraine. Russia is also entangled in a separate dispute with France over journalist accreditation. Photo by Lodo27 from Moscow, Russia, Wikimedia commons.