An unusual scene during a briefing by Maria Zakharova

On Thursday 21 November, Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, offered an unexpected sequence during a press conference broadcast live. In the middle of the session, she answered a telephone call, forgetting that her microphone was open. The conversation, which was clearly audible to the entire room, quickly circulated on social networks, attracting the attention of the world’s media.

A revealing conversation

During this call, a male caller, whose identity was not specified, advised him not to comment on an accusation by Kiev concerning an intercontinental ballistic missile launch. This strike is said to have targeted the Dnipro region, in particular the Ukrainian missile factory Pivdenmach (called Yuzhmach in Russian).

‘Hello, Masha? We are not commenting on the ballistic missile attack on Yuzhmash that the Western media are talking about’, you could clearly hear.

Maria Zakharova, visibly unperturbed, hung up without mentioning the exchange and continued the briefing as if nothing had happened, later answering a question from a journalist via video conference.

An unprecedented strike and official silence

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, this strike would include the use of an intercontinental ballistic missile for the first time in the conflict, a major escalation if confirmed. Moscow, for its part, made no comment, either through the Kremlin or its armed forces.

The embarrassing passage was removed from the replay published on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s YouTube channel, but remains accessible on Rutube, via Russia Today. Some independent media, such as Agent, are wondering whether this was a genuine gaffe or a staged event orchestrated to send an indirect message.

Reactions and ambiguity

Maria Zakharova, interviewed later by the Tass agency, played down the incident, explaining that she was consulting experts to clarify her responsibilities.

The Foreign Ministry has no comment to make on the matter.

For some observers, this footage could be interpreted as an implicit claim. For others, it simply illustrates the opaque and controlled communication of the Russian authorities. Whatever the case, the extract continues to be the talk of the town, fuelling speculation about the real intentions behind this unusual scene.