Conflicts

Maria Zakharova, a Russian spokesperson, was ordered not to talk about the launch of the intercontinental ballistic missile against Ukraine. How do we know this? She didn't mute her microphone during a phone call.

A little tip: when you're in front of a microphone, make sure it's muted. Otherwise, if you don't move away from it, everyone can hear your conversation on the phone. This is the mishap that happened to Maria Zakharova, the spokesperson for Russian diplomacy. While she was at a press conference, she was interrupted by a phone call. She picked up, probably seeing from the caller ID that it was important. We don't know anything about her interlocutor, however, everyone present could hear the content of her remarks: "don't talk about that".

Missile launch

The “it” is the ballistic missile launch on Thursday, November 21, 2024. Through the microphone, it was possible to hear this: “Hello Macha [her diminutive]! We don't comment on the ballistic missile attack on Yuzhmash [a company in Ukraine].” After hanging up, she continued her press conference, as if nothing had happened to answer a journalist on a teleconference. The video of the press conference was deleted from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ YouTube channel. But the excerpt was nevertheless recovered and is available on several social media networks. Maria Zakharova indicated that she had asked the experts a question about an “ongoing file” and that the answer had arrived during the press conference.

(MH with Olivier Duquesne – Source: France Info – Picture: © picture alliance / Anadolu | Sefa Karacan)