Russia Orders the Expulsion of 23 British Diplomats in Retaliation
Source: Bloomberg
Russia ordered the expulsion of 23 British diplomats in retaliation for U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May’s ouster of 23 Kremlin envoys over the nerve-agent poisoning near London of a former spy and his daughter.
The British consulate in St. Petersburg was also ordered to close and the British Council must stop its work in Russia, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a website statement Saturday. U.K. Ambassador Laurie Bristow was summoned to the ministry and told the actions are “in response to the provocative actions of the British side and the unsubstantiated accusations” against Russia, the ministry said.
The diplomats were given one week to leave Russia. “If further actions of an unfriendly nature are taken against Russia, the Russian side reserves the right to take other retaliatory measures,” the ministry said.
Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-17/russia-says-it-s-summoning-u-k-envoy-over-diplomat-expulsions
Closing a consulate in a major city and the British Council is escalating the sanctions.