LONDON (REUTERS) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday (June 28) the more Western countries send weapons to Ukraine, the longer the conflict will last.

Russia has repeatedly blamed the West for prolonging the conflict, which Moscow calls a "special military operation", and has targeted missile strikes against arms depots storing weapons provided to Kyiv by the United States and Europe.

Speaking at a news conference during a visit to Turkmenistan, Mr Lavrov said Russia did not target a shopping centre in the Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk on Monday, where at least 18 people died following a Russian strike.

Echoing a statement issued by Russia's Defence Ministry earlier on Tuesday, Mr Lavrov told reporters the mall was empty at the time a fire occurred as a result of Russia hitting an arms depot storing Western weapons that was next to the shopping centre.