On Monday, Russia announced the expulsion of two British diplomats from its Moscow embassy, citing espionage accusations which the United Kingdom dismissed as “malicious and baseless.”
The Federal Security Service (FSB) claimed the diplomats provided false personal information while attempting to gain entry into Russia and participated in activities deemed as espionage and subversion, posing a threat to the nation’s security. However, no evidence was put forth to support these accusations.
As reported by the state news agency RIA Novosti, the expulsion involves revoking the diplomats’ accreditations, requiring them to leave Russia within a fortnight. Furthermore, a summons was issued to a British embassy representative by the Russian Foreign Ministry, reinforcing Moscow’s stance against the presence of undeclared British intelligence operatives within Russian borders.
The Foreign Office in London countered with a statement, emphasizing that these accusations are not unprecedented for Russian authorities, yet it refrained from mentioning any plans for retaliatory actions. This latest diplomatic clash harks back to similar occurrences in the past involving British diplomats.
Previously, in the fall of last year, Russia accused seven British diplomats of spying, resulting in six being expelled in September and one in November, which was then labeled “baseless” by the British government. These incidents align with escalating tensions sparked by the war in Ukraine and London’s move to reduce Russian diplomatic roles in response.
Most recently, last month, the U.K. had expelled a Russian diplomat in response to the November incident. Furthermore, in May 2024, Britain expelled Russia’s defense attaché, claiming he was an undeclared intelligence officer, which led to the closure of several Russian diplomatic sites in the U.K., suspected of hosting espionage activities. Russia mirrored the move by expelling the British defense attaché shortly thereafter.
The tit-for-tat expulsions of diplomats between Moscow and Western nations have been on the rise since Russia commenced its military intervention in Ukraine in 2022. In 2023, reports from Russian outlet RBC indicated that Western countries, along with Japan, had expelled 670 Russian diplomats since the onset of 2022. Moscow’s response included the expulsion of 346 Western diplomats, surpassing the total expulsions of the preceding 20 years combined.
