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German authorities have officially blamed Russia for an\u00a0attempted act of\u00a0sabotage against a\u00a0Ukrainian An-124 cargo plane at\u00a0Leipzig airport. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt and Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul laid out Berlin\u2019s position at\u00a0a\u00a0news conference.<\/p>\n
Wadephul said Germany would respond by\u00a0closing the Russian Consulate General in\u00a0Bonn and the \u201cRussian House\u201d [cultural center] in\u00a0Berlin. He\u00a0also summoned Russia\u2019s ambassador to\u00a0the German Foreign Ministry.<\/p>\n
German authorities will also tighten entry rules for Russian citizens.<\/p>\n
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0the EU\u00a0\u201cstands in\u00a0full solidarity with Germany in\u00a0the face of\u00a0this attack by\u00a0Russia.\u201d She promised to\u00a0discuss the matter with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and said EU\u00a0foreign ministers would begin preparing additional sanctions.<\/p>\n Rutte, for his part,\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0that \u201cthe evidence [of Russia\u2019s involvement in\u00a0the sabotage] is\u00a0clear.\u201d \u201cI\u00a0welcome the measures announced by\u00a0Germany in\u00a0response,\u201d he\u00a0said.<\/p>\n Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova criticized the German authorities\u2019 actions. \u201cThey\u2019ve invented a\u00a0pretext. Meanwhile, Berlin itself is\u00a0thoroughly tainted both by\u00a0stoking the Ukrainian conflict and by\u00a0taking part in\u00a0terrorist attacks against civilians,\u201d she\u00a0said<\/a>. Zakharova also said she believed the \u201cRussian House\u201d had \u201clong been a\u00a0thorn in\u00a0the side\u201d of\u00a0the German authorities, and she promised that Russia would \u201crespond\u201d to\u00a0the decision to\u00a0close it.<\/p>\n This is\u00a0a\u00a0developing story.<\/p>\n At\u00a0Meduza, we\u00a0are committed to\u00a0transparency about our use of\u00a0artificial intelligence in\u00a0the newsroom. The story you\u2019re reading was written by\u00a0one of\u00a0our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an\u00a0AI\u00a0model configured to\u00a0follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is\u00a0the result of\u00a0extensive testing and refinements to\u00a0ensure our English-language coverage is\u00a0timely and accurate. A\u00a0Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.<\/p>\n If\u00a0you find any errors in\u00a0this translation, please contact us\u00a0at\u00a0[email\u00a0protected]<\/a>.<\/p>\n