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The Foreign Office has revoked the accreditation of a Russian diplomat after a British official was expelled from Moscow final yr.
A Foreign Office spokesperson stated the Russian ambassador to the UK had been summoned to a gathering with a senior British official to revoke the accreditation of the diplomat.
“This is in response to Russia’s unprovoked and baseless decision to strip the accreditation of a British diplomat in Moscow in November,” they stated.
The spokesperson added: “The UK will not stand for intimidation of our staff in this way, and so we are taking reciprocal action.
“Any additional motion taken by Russia will probably be thought of an escalation and responded to accordingly.”
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Shortly after the announcement, Foreign Secretary David Lammy posted on X: “We’ve stripped a Russian diplomat’s accreditation, following Russia’s recent expulsion of a British diplomat.
“We are unapologetic about defending our nationwide pursuits.
“My message to Russia is clear – if you take action against us, we will respond.”
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It comes after the TASS Russian state information company stated in November that an worker of the British Embassy in Moscow had been stripped of his accreditation “for intentionally providing false information when entering the Russian Federation” and accused him of espionage.
TASS claimed he had supplied false info to enter the nation and alleged he was engaged in spying and sabotage.
It stated it had discovered proof the diplomat was concerned in “reconnaissance and subversive work that threatens the security of the Russian Federation”.
The British diplomat who was expelled by Moscow in November labored on the embassy in Moscow and had changed certainly one of six British intelligence officers who have been expelled in August, in line with TASS.
The Foreign Office additionally rejected Russia’s accusations that the six diplomats had been engaged in “spying and sabotage” as “baseless”.
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In May final yr, the UK additionally expelled Russia’s defence attache in London, Colonel Maxim Elovik, claiming he was an “undeclared military intelligence officer”.
The authorities additionally eliminated diplomatic standing from a number of Russian-owned premises and positioned restrictions on Russian diplomatic visas.
In response, Russia expelled Britain’s defence attache in Moscow, Captain Adrian Coghill.
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