Russia demands France explain detention of government employee

Russia said Wednesday that it was waiting for "explanations" from France after a Russian government employee was detained for hours at a Paris airport in what it called a "shameful spectacle".

The employee, whom Russia did not name, worked for the foreign ministry and had arrived in France on Sunday as part of an official delegation, Moscow said.

It said French border police confiscated her phone and computer upon landing and kept her waiting in border control for hours, despite her having been issued a French visa.

Ties between France and Russia have sunk to new depths in recent months as Moscow channels criticism towards Europe and French President Emmanuel Macron in particular over their support for Ukraine.

"What happened on April 6 at Charles de Gaulle airport has no explanation," Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said during a weekly press briefing.

"The Russian Embassy immediately sent a consular officer to the airport. Our diplomat had to wait almost seven hours for access to their colleague, who had arrived in France as part of an official delegation," she added.

"We do not intend to leave this without consequences," she said.

There was no immediate response from Paris.

"We have certainly demanded explanations from the French side. Frankly speaking, it is difficult to imagine how they will justify themselves," Zakharova said in the briefing.

 'Totally unacceptable.' 

The Kremlin called the detention "totally unacceptable" and said it would "further aggravate" ties between Moscow and Paris.

Russia said it had sent a note of protest to the French foreign ministry and summoned the French ambassador in Moscow.

Both Russia and France have expelled dozens of diplomats from the other country since Moscow's Ukraine offensive began more than three years ago.

The Kremlin has recently redirected much of its anger over the Ukraine conflict towards Europe and away from the United States, which is seeking warmer ties with Moscow.

France has been a staunch backer of Ukraine and floated the idea of deploying peacekeepers in the country as part of a future peace settlement, a proposal Russia says would be tantamount to an act of war.

Macron on Monday accused Russia of "stalling tactics" after it rejected a joint US-Ukrainian proposal for a ceasefire and set conditions for a truce in the Black Sea.

Moscow currently holds French researcher Laurent Vinatier, who works for a Swiss conflict mediation NGO, in jail on what Paris says are "arbitrary" charges.