The planned act of tribute by the Russian ambassador to Warsaw at a Soviet war memorial was met with protests from Ukrainians, resulting in his inability to lay flowers. The protesters were demonstrating against the Russian invasion and their opposition was strong enough to prevent the ambassador from carrying out his intended tribute.
As Sergey Andreyev tried to lay a wreath at a war cemetery, he found himself surrounded by members of the Euromaidan-Warsaw group who were protesting against his actions. The demonstrators obstructed Andreyev from completing the act of tribute and the situation became tense as opposing sides clashed in their opinions.
After being prevented from reaching the memorial, Andreyev was forced to abandon his wreath in front of the cemetery. However, the situation took a turn for the worse when the Ukrainians proceeded to trample on the flowers and even went so far as to hang a Russian flag on a mock missile, making a clear statement of their anger and disgust towards the Russian invasion.
Viktoria Pogrebniak, a member of Euromaidan-Warsaw, issued a statement condemning the actions of those responsible for the brutal war between Russia and Ukraine. She singled out Sergey Andreyev, whom she referred to as a “diplomatic soldier,” as one of the perpetrators who bears responsibility for the bloodshed. Pogrebniak criticized Andreyev for his public questioning of not just the recent massacres in Bucha and murders in Mariupol, but also for seemingly downplaying the severity of Soviet-era crimes.