The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has demanded that Russia take measures to ensure the safety of Ukrainian consuls and investigate the attack on Ukrainian consul Oleksandr Kovtun which took place in Groznyy on 16 March.
"The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry resolutely protests against the attack by unidentified individuals on the consul of Ukraine's consulate-general in Rostov-on-Don while he was on an official trip to Groznyy (Russian Federation) to attend the trial of Ukrainian nationals Mykola Karpyuk and Stanyslav Klykh illegally held in Russia," the ministry's statement reads.
The attack on a person with diplomatic immunity is a "flagrant violation of all international legal acts and attests to Russia's failure to guarantee the safety of foreign diplomats on its territory", it added.
The Ukrainian consul was also affected when a group of unidentified individuals attacked the head of the Russian Committee for Prevention of Torture, Igor Kalyapin, in Groznyy on 16 March.