New expulsions of Russian diplomats, Moscow vows response
Russia will respond proportionately to the expulsion of its diplomats from a number of Western countries, Russian ex-president and deputy head of security council Dmitry Medvedev said late on Monday (4 April).
“Everyone knows the answer: it will be symmetrical and destructive for bilateral relations,” Medvedev said in a posting on his Telegram channel.
“Who have they punished? First of all, themselves.”
“If this continues, it will be fitting, as I wrote back on 26 February – to slam shut the door on Western embassies,” Medvedev said. “It will be cheaper for everyone. And then we will end up just looking at each other in no other way than through gunsights.”
On Monday, France said it would expel 35 Russian diplomats over Moscow’s actions in Ukraine and Germany declared “significant number” of Russian diplomats as undesirable,.
Germany decided to declare undesirable a “significant number” of officials at the Russian embassy, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said, adding that Berlin would also boost its support to Ukraine’s armed forces.
“The Federal Government has therefore decided today to declare undesirable a significant number of members of the Russian Embassy who have worked here in Germany every day against our freedom, against the cohesion of our society.”
“The images from Bucha testify to an unbelievable brutality on the part of the Russian leadership and those who follow its propaganda,” Baerbock said in a statement, referring to civilian killings in north Ukraine.
Germany’s Foreign Ministry lists 104 accredited Russian diplomats in Germany.
“We are launching further responses with our partners,” she added. “We will further tighten the existing sanctions against Russia, we will decisively increase our support to the Ukrainian armed forces and we will also strengthen NATO’s eastern flank.”
On 30 March Slovakis expelled 35 Russian diplomats after several accusations of espionage surfaced.
Belgium, the Netherlands and Ireland on 29 March expelled a total of 42 Russian diplomats, some for alleged spying, in what the Irish prime minister said was a coordinated move.
