Russia is expelling 23 British diplomats from the country after the UK kicked Russian diplomats out.
By
Emily Stewart Updated Mar 17, 2018, 11:31am EDT
Russian
President Vladimir Putin arrives for the opening day of the 2017 G20 summit in
Hamburg, Germany. Photo by Friedemann Vogel - Pool/Getty Images
Just
days after United Kingdom Prime Minister Theresa May said her country would
expel 23 Russian diplomats over the nerve agent attack of a Russian ex-spy and
his daughter on British soil, Russia is retaliating by expelling Britain’s
diplomats. On Saturday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry ordered the expulsion of 23
British officials from the country.
The
announcement is the latest development in an ongoing international saga that
began on March 4, when Sergei Skripal, a former Soviet and Russian spy, was
found unconscious on a bench next to his daughter, Yulia, in the English city of
Salisbury. UK officials believe that the Skripals were exposed to nerve agent
known as Novichok, which was developed in Russia. The pair remain in the
hospital and are critically ill.
During
a speech in Parliament on Wednesday, UK Prime Minister Theresa May laid out a
plan of action to punish Moscow for poisoning Skripal and his daughter. That
included expelling Russian diplomats, suspending high-level contacts with the
Kremlin, stepping up security checks at borders, and having top officials
boycott the World Cup in Russia this summer. The UK also said it would crack
down on Russian oligarchs who stash money in London real estate and banks.
Russia
responded in kind on Saturday, when the Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Laurie
Bristow, the British ambassador to Russia, to tell him that 23 diplomats have
one week to leave Russia “in response to the provocative actions of the British
side and unsubstantiated accusations,” according to a statement. Russia also
revoked permission for the UK to open a general consulate in St. Petersburg, and
the British Council, a cultural and educational organization, has been ordered
to stop its activities in the country.
Russian
officials also warned that if Britain takes “further unfriendly actions” against
Russia, “The Russian side reserves the right to take further retaliatory
measures.”
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