[attach id=335134 size="medium"]Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Photo: Reuters[/attach]

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged Western ambassadors yesterday to base the reports they write for their countries about the crisis in Ukraine on what they see on Russian TV.

Lavrov accused Ukraine of blocking Russian television broadcasts onto its territory and, echoing charges by Kiev about Moscow, said the fellow former Soviet republic’s media were broadcasting lies about the crisis.

“They are trying to set up an information blockade and, with unbiased information closed off to viewers and radio listeners, run completely shameless lies,” Lavrov told a news conference with the visiting Ugandan foreign minister.

“The ambassadors in Moscow obviously see what Russian TV is showing in live broadcasts and I am sure they are obliged to report to their capitals the facts they see live. Otherwise they would be doing a totally unprofessional job.”

Russia denies accusations by the West that it is fomenting separatist unrest in Ukraine and says its neighbour is in the hands of far-right leaders sponsored by the West. Moscow has urged the West to use its influence with Kiev to stop violence in the east which blames on the government in Kiev.

“I have no doubt that in Washington and Brussels and other European capitals they know perfectly well the crux of what is going on in Ukraine,” Lavrov said, suggesting Western powers were trying to shift the blame on to Russia.