(CNN) — An explosion was recorded this Wednesday at the Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid, according to a statement from the Spanish Ministry of the Interior published this Wednesday.
One person was slightly injured following handling a letter and is being treated at hospital, the ministry added. The Embassy is located in Hortaleza.
The Spanish National Police said that an explosive device went off at the Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid, and that it is investigating what happened.
They added that it is too soon to know if the explosion occurred when an Embassy worker tried to open an envelope or simply move the envelope.
For his part, the spokesman for the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Oleg Nikolenko, confirmed that a member of the Ukrainian Embassy staff was slightly injured following handling an envelope that exploded in his hands.
“His life is not in danger,” Nikolenko said on Facebook.
Nikolenko described the staffer’s position as “commander”. In addition, he added that no one else was injured and that security was reinforced at the Madrid Embassy.
“Minister Dmytro Kuleba (Ukrainian Foreign Minister) has issued an urgent instruction to strengthen security at all Ukrainian embassies abroad,” says Nikolenko.
“Whoever is behind this explosion will not succeed in intimidating Ukrainian diplomats or stopping their daily work to strengthen Ukraine and counter Russian aggression,” Nikolenko was quoted as saying by Kuleba.
Spain, a NATO member country, has sent military equipment to help Ukraine deal with the Russian invasion.
The envelope was addressed to the ambassador
The envelope that exploded this Wednesday was addressed to Ambassador Serhil Pohoreltsev, according to a statement from the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, spoke with Ambassador Pohoreltsev following the incident. The injured person was a Ukrainian worker, according to the same statement.
Albares, who is visiting Spanish troops on a NATO mission in Romania, expressed his support and solidarity following the incident at the diplomatic mission in Madrid.
News in development.
