The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Sweden’s ambassador in Moscow, Christina Johannesson, on 6 July to lodge a formal protest over a drone incident at the Russian Embassy in Stockholm. The move follows a 2 July event in which two unmanned aerial vehicles entered the embassy compound: one dropped a container of red paint, and the other, carrying a mock improvised explosive device, crashed near the chancery building. No injuries were reported. The Russian ministry described the protest as “resolute” and demanded that Swedish authorities take exhaustive measures to prevent further such episodes.

According to Russian officials, the incident is part of a pattern of “systematic attacks” using drones that have targeted the embassy and trade mission since at least May 2024. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova characterised the events as “literal physical raids by drones that are being deliberately flown and targeted directly into the compound’s perimeter.” Moscow asserts that Swedish law enforcement has done little beyond filing formal reports, amounting to de facto inaction that violates Sweden’s obligations under the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. The Russian Embassy in Stockholm stated that the attacks are provocations intended to intimidate staff, adding that such efforts “will not succeed.”

Swedish authorities, through the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, confirmed the ambassador’s summons and acknowledged that it concerned a drone incident at the Russian Embassy. Stockholm underlined that “Swedish authorities have an obligation to protect diplomatic missions and diplomatic personnel under the Vienna Convention,” but did not comment on the specific allegations of inaction. The Swedish response, as reported by Dagens Nyheter, did not address the Russian claim that investigations into dozens of similar acts of vandalism have yielded no results. The Swedish side has previously summoned Russia’s ambassador over other matters, including Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities, indicating a broader context of strained bilateral ties.

The drone episodes sit within a wider deterioration of diplomatic relations. In 2023, Russia expelled five Swedish diplomats and withdrew consent for Sweden’s consulate-general in St. Petersburg, reciprocating what Moscow called an “openly hostile step” by Stockholm. More recently, a Ukrainian national attempted to ram the embassy gates with a car, an act Russian diplomats described as a repeat provocation. Viewed from Moscow, the drone attacks and the perceived lack of Swedish enforcement reflect a “degradation of the security situation” around Russian missions, a charge that Swedish officials have not publicly rebutted in detail. The Russian protest note demands strict compliance with the Vienna Convention, but no further concrete steps—such as retaliatory expulsions or legal action—have been announced by either side. The dossier remains open, with Moscow signalling it will continue to press Stockholm for what it considers adequate protective measures.