Russia to expel German diplomats in tit-for-tat move
Russia has slammed a decision by Germany to expel Russian diplomats from the country en masse, saying it has decided to respond in kind to the move.
The Russian Foreign Ministry made the announcement on Saturday, saying it officially notified German Ambassador to Moscow Geza Andreas von Geyr of the decision on April 5.
"The German authorities have decided on another mass expulsion of employees of Russian diplomatic missions in Germany. We strongly condemn these actions of Berlin, which continues to defiantly destroy the entire range of Russian-German relations," the ministry said, without revealing the number of diplomats involved.
"As a response to Berlin's hostile actions, the Russian side has decided to mirror the decision and expel German diplomats from Russia, as well as to significantly limit the maximum number of employees of German diplomatic missions in our country,” it added.
Maria Zakharova, the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, told RIA Novosti news agency that Moscow was expelling more than 20 German diplomats.
Relations between Moscow and Berlin have frayed since Russia launched its “special military operation” in Ukraine in late February 2022. Western countries have imposed unprecedented economic sanctions against Moscow while supplying many consignments of heavy weaponry to Kiev.
Germany, along with the US, has been among the biggest suppliers of weapons for Ukraine.
Last month, the German parliament’s budget committee approved spending about eight billion Euros ($8.7 billion) to buy weapons and equipment for Ukraine between 2024 and 2032 amid Russia's repeated warnings that Western military assistance will only prolong the war.
The two countries are also at odds over Europe’s energy crisis. Germany has previously accused Russia of wielding energy as a weapon amid tensions over the war in Ukraine. Russia denies the accusations and blames the West for gas shortages in Europe.
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