Russia claims Ottawa embassy was attacked, summons Canada's ambassador in Moscow

The flag flies outside the Embassy of the Russian Federation to Canada in Ottawa on Monday, March 26, 2018. Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland says Canada is expelling four Russian diplomats and will deny permission for three others to bolster Russian staff in Canada. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

OTTAWA -

Russia's foreign ministry summoned Canada's ambassador on Monday, claiming Ottawa police and the RCMP have turned a blind eye to attacks at its embassy.

Russia's ambassador to Canada, Oleg Stepanov, said an unidentified person ran from a nearby park toward the embassy shortly after midnight on Sept. 12 and threw a lit Molotov cocktail over the fence before scampering off.

He said the device didn't ignite and no property was damaged.

In a Russian-language statement Monday afternoon, Moscow's foreign ministry claimed police have turned a blind eye to "aggressive demonstrators" blocking public access to the embassy's consular section.

Moscow claims police witnessed this incident but didn't intervene.

The Russian government said authorities aren't doing enough to prevent or detain those committing "hostile actions" against its diplomatic staff, in breach of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.

The office of Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said it was closely following the issue.

"Violence and vandalism are not acceptable, and we understand that the relevant authorities are looking into this matter, " wrote spokesman Adrien Blanchard.

The Ottawa Police Service said it wasn't aware of the embassy filing a report.

"There is no report to police that we are aware of, " wrote spokeswoman Carol Macpherson.

The RCMP's national division, which is charged with protecting foreign diplomatic properties, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Russian embassy in Ottawa provided an article in the state-owned news site Sputnik, in which Stepanov argues his staff need police or a security guard permanently stationed at diplomatic missions.

The country has a separate embassy, consulate and trade office in Ottawa, all three of which sit near the Rideau River, plus a Toronto and Montreal consulate.

Stepanov said his officials provided police with video footage of the Molotov cocktail incident. "We are essentially talking about an attempt to commit a terrorist act, " he is quoted as saying in the Sputnik posting.

Moscow has summoned Canadian ambassador Alison LeClaire, a move meant to formally register Russia's growing ire with Canada.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Sunday that Russia's actions since invading Ukraine "clearly include war crimes, " noting reports of mass graves.

Joly's office doubled down on that phrasing Monday.

"We will not spare any effort to hold Putin and his accomplices accountable for their war crimes, " Blanchard wrote.

"We will continue to impose severe costs on the Russian regime for this unjustified invasion. "

The Russian embassy is on Charlotte Street in Ottawa, where the city has installed "Free-Libre Ukraine" street signs.

A bicycle painted blue and yellow sat outside the embassy for weeks until a group spray-painted it black on Aug. 16.

The group also painted a large Z on the sidewalk and lamppost, which is a sign indicating support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. One passerby posted photos on social media of the group, which appeared to have arrived on the scene in a car with diplomatic plates.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2022.