Moscow — Russia has expelled six British diplomats, accusing them of espionage and subversive activities. The move has been condemned by the UK as “completely baseless,” and it follows reciprocal expulsions earlier this year between the two countries.
According to Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), the British diplomats were involved in intelligence-gathering and activities aimed at inflicting strategic damage on Russia. The FSB claimed these diplomats were sent by a division of the UK’s Foreign Office tasked with undermining Russian interests. Russian TV reported that the diplomats had engaged with independent media and rights groups labeled as “foreign agents” by the Russian government.
The UK Foreign Office has dismissed these accusations as unfounded, linking the expulsions to its own measures taken in response to Russian state-directed activities. In May, the UK had expelled Russia’s defense attaché in London, alleging he was an undeclared intelligence officer, and subsequently closed several Russian diplomatic properties used for spying.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova justified the expulsions as a response to the British diplomats’ alleged subversive actions and warned that further instances of similar behavior would result in additional expulsions.
The diplomatic tension comes as British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is visiting Washington for talks, including discussions on Ukraine’s request to use Western-supplied weapons against targets inside Russia. President Vladimir Putin has warned that such actions could escalate to a conflict involving NATO.
Despite the current diplomatic strains, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that severing diplomatic relations with the UK was not under consideration. Meanwhile, Starmer emphasized that the UK does not seek conflict with Russia, reiterating support for Ukraine’s right to self-defense while stressing that Russia’s actions were the cause of the ongoing conflict.
The recent spate of diplomatic expulsions reflects growing East-West tensions, with over 670 Russian diplomats expelled by Western countries and Japan since the beginning of the Ukraine conflict, compared to 346 Russian diplomats expelled by Moscow in response.
The situation highlights the ongoing diplomatic friction between Russia and Western nations as geopolitical tensions continue to escalate.
