Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the cultural centers belonging to Germany’s Goethe Institute in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg will be shut down.

Speaking on Thursday at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Lavrov said that Germany “could not have failed to notice” that closing the Russian House would mean the “end of their cultural presence in Russia.”

Russia’s move comes after Berlin blamed Moscow for an attempt to attack Leipzig/Halle airport and announced that Russia’s consulate in Bonn and the Russian House cultural center in the German capital will be closed.

On August 4, a drone carrying explosive materials was found near a Ukrainian aircraft at this airport and was later neutralized.

This airport is an important air cargo transport hub that is used to support Ukraine.

Western officials have widely accused Moscow of carrying out a campaign of sabotage and disruption aimed at weakening support for Ukraine and destabilizing European countries.