Russia has declared 34 French diplomats in the country “persona non grata” in response to a decision by France to expel 41 Russian diplomats in April, Russia’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday.
The French ambassador to Moscow, Pierre Levy, was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday and protests were strongly expressed against the provocative and unjustified decision by the French authorities to declare 41 Russian diplomats in France persona non grata. †
“It was emphasized that this act seriously damages Russo-French relations and constructive bilateral cooperation,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
“In response, 34 French diplomats have been declared ‘persona non grata’,” the ministry added. “They were ordered to leave the territory of Russia within two weeks from the date of delivery of the relevant note to the ambassador.”
France issued a statement saying it “strongly condemns” this move.
“The work of these diplomats and the staff of our embassy in Russia, whose courage and great professionalism pay tribute to France, falls entirely within the framework of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic and Consular Relations. The decision of the Russian authorities has no legitimate basis. We can only condemn it.”
Similarly, Russia has also expelled 27 Spanish diplomats in Russia in response to a decision by Spain to expel 27 Russian diplomats in April, Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has expelled employees from many embassies in similar retaliatory actions. Some of the most recent countries to receive a similar response from Moscow include Finland, Germany, Bulgaria, Poland, Denmark and Norway.