Bratislava refers to intelligence information. Moscow immediately announced retaliation.
Slovakia expels 35 Russian diplomats with reference to intelligence information. The country “will reduce the staff of the Russian Embassy in Bratislava by 35 people,” a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday. “We regret that the Russian diplomatic mission has not shown interest in working properly in Slovakia after previous expulsions of Russian diplomats in recent years.”
Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland and the Czech Republic had already expelled dozens of Russian diplomats on Tuesday. 21 were affected in Belgium, 17 in the Netherlands, four in Ireland and one in the Czech Republic. The countries referred to espionage activities.
Moscow immediately announced retaliation. The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs had previously announced the expulsion of a total of ten diplomats from the Baltic states of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania. On March 18, the three countries withdrew the accreditation of a total of ten Russian diplomats.
Other countries, including Poland and the United States, also expelled several Russian diplomats after Russia’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine, accusing them of intelligence activities and jeopardizing national security.
(APA/AFP)