Russia Expels Several German Diplomats

Russia is expelling a number of German diplomats

Amidst ongoing tensions between Russia and the West over the Ukraine war, the Kremlin has decided to expel a number of German diplomats from Russian soil.

According to Reuters, Maria Zakharova, the spokesperson for the country’s Foreign Ministry, stated today, Saturday, April 22, in an interview with the RIA news network, that this decision is a retaliatory measure against the mass expulsion of Russian embassy staff from Berlin. The RIA news network, without citing a source, reported that Germany has expelled more than 20 Russian diplomats.

A German Foreign Ministry official said that his country has been negotiating with Moscow on this matter in recent weeks, and the visit of several Russian government officials to Berlin was in line with these discussions.

This decision by Russia to expel these individuals is the latest in a series of expulsions of Western diplomats following the military invasion of Ukraine last year.

Norway announced that it has accused fifteen members of the Russian embassy of spying under diplomatic cover and expelled them from the country. Simultaneously, the Kremlin, in an angry reaction, promised to give a decisive response to this decision.