War: Western countries accuse Russia of planning ‘dirty bomb’ 

Western countries have accused Russia of plotting to use a threat of a bomb laced with nuclear material as a pretext for escalation in Ukraine, according to reports.

With Ukrainian forces advancing into Russian-occupied Kherson province, Russia’s defence minister Sergei Shoigu phoned Western counterparts on Sunday to tell them Moscow suspected Kyiv of planning to use a “dirty bomb”.

In a joint statement, the foreign ministers of France, Britain, and the United States said they had all rejected the allegations and reaffirmed their support for Ukraine against Russia.

“Our countries made clear that we all reject Russia’s transparently false allegations that Ukraine is preparing to use a dirty bomb on its territory,” they said in a statement.

In an overnight address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Russian accusation was a sign Moscow was planning such an attack itself and would blame Ukraine.

“If Russia calls and says that Ukraine is allegedly preparing something, it means one thing: Russia has already prepared all this,” Zelensky said.

“So when today the Russian Minister of Defense organises a phone carousel and calls foreign ministers with stories about the so-called ‘dirty’ nuclear bomb, everyone understands everything well”.