Ukraine and its Western allies are dismissing a claim by Russian officials that a dirty bomb is being constructed in Kyiv, denouncing the allegation as a deceptive plot by Russia to try and escalate the Ukrainian war.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu made the claim over the weekend that Ukraine was preparing to launch a dirty bomb, described by CNN as a weapon that "combines conventional explosives like dynamite and radioactive material like uranium." However, officials in the United States, United Kingdom, and France joined Ukrainian officials in shooting down this allegation, calling it a "false flag" operation.
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