Earlier this week, Russia’s diplomatic missions in several Ukrainian cities, including Kiev, Lviv, Odesa and Kharkiv, were attacked by protesters calling for the release of Ukrainian national Nadezhda Savchenko, who is on trial in Russia for the murder of two Russian journalists in eastern Ukraine.
"The United States has seen violent protests at and around the Russian diplomatic and consular facilities in Ukraine," Kirby stated on Friday. "We call on the people of Ukraine to express themselves peacefully and we call on Ukraine security services to continue to uphold their responsibilities under the Vienna convention for the protection of diplomatic and consular missions."
On Friday, the Ukrainian Interior Ministry strongly condemned the attacks on Russian diplomatic missions and called on Ukrainians to refrain from provocative actions.
Savchenko is suspected of helping to direct artillery fire near the eastern Ukrainian city of Lugansk on June 17, 2014, that led to the deaths of two Russian journalists, Igor Kornelyuk and Anton Voloshin.
Russian prosecutors are seeking a 23-year prison sentence for Savchenko. The 34-year-old Ukrainian citizen denies all the allegations. A court ruling in the case is expected to be announced on March 21-22.
