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MOSCOW: Russia expelled an ‘unspecified’ number of US diplomats in retaliation for Washington’s move to remove 12 of Moscow’s New York-based representatives to the United Nations, state-media reported.
“On March 23, a senior diplomat of the US diplomatic mission in Moscow summoned to the Foreign Ministry, was handed a note with a list of expelled American diplomats declared ‘persona non grata’,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The step is taken in response to expulsion of Russian diplomats from the Russian Permanent Mission to the UN in New York and a Russian employee of the UN secretariat, the ministry explained.
Later, a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the development. “On March 23, Russia’s ministry of foreign affairs gave the embassy a list of diplomats declared ‘persona non grata’ on March 23,” a State Department spokesperson said.
However, there is no information on the number of diplomats who were asked to leave. The spokesperson described the latest move as Moscow’s ‘latest unhelpful and unproductive step’ in the bilateral ties between the two countries.
“Now more than ever, it is critical that the two countries have necessary diplomatic personnel in place to facilitate communication between our governments. Therefore, we call on the Russian government to end its unjustified expulsion of American diplomats and staff,” the spokesperson added, referring to Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
Washington last month said it was expelling 12 Russian diplomats at the country’s UN mission in New York over national security concerns, and later announced it would oust an additional Russian at the UN who it said was a spy.
The Russian move is the latest blow to the fast-deteriorating ties between Washington and Moscow, a bond that has been increasingly stretched since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops to invade Ukraine on February 24.
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden is in Europe to discuss the invasion of Ukraine, for which the West, including the America, has imposed various sanctions against Russia. In response, Moscow, too, has announced a ban on top American officials, including Biden, from entering Russia.
