Russia's Federal Security Service on Friday accused six British diplomats of spying and said a decision has been made to withdraw their accreditation.
Russian state TV quoted an official from the security service known as the FSB as saying that they will be expelled. The expulsions come as Prime Minister Keir Starmer visits Washington for talks with President Joe Biden that will include Ukraine's request to use Western-supplied weapons against targets inside Russia.
Russia's Federal Security Service on Friday accused six British diplomats of spying and said a decision has been made to withdraw their accreditation.
Russian state TV quoted an official from the security service known as the FSB as saying that they will be expelled. The expulsions come as Prime Minister Keir Starmer visits Washington for talks with President Joe Biden that will include Ukraine's request to use Western-supplied weapons against targets inside Russia.
Starmer said on his way to the US that Britain does not 바카라seek any conflict with Russia바카라.
바카라Russia started this conflict. Russia illegally invaded Ukraine. Russia could end this conflict straight away,바카라 he told reporters.
바카라Ukraine has the right to self-defense and we've obviously been absolutely fully supportive of Ukraine's right to self-defense 바카라 we're providing training capability, as you know. But we don't seek any conflict with Russia 바카라 that's not our intention in the slightest,바카라 he said.
The FSB said it received documents indicating that the diplomats were sent to Russia by a division of the UK Foreign Office 바카라whose main task is to inflict a strategic defeat on our country바카라, and that they were involved in 바카라intelligence-gathering and subversive activities바카라.
Russian state TV said in a report that the six diplomats had met with independent media and rights groups that have been declared 바카라foreign agents바카라 바카라 a label the Russian authorities have actively used against organizations and individuals critical of the Kremlin.
The British Embassy in Moscow did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press. There was no immediate comment from Britain's Foreign Office.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said in an online statement that 바카라We fully agree with the assessments of the activities of the British so-called diplomats expressed by the Russian FSB. The British Embassy has gone far beyond the limits outlined by the Vienna Conventions." She said the diplomats were carrying out 바카라subversive actions aimed at causing harm to our people바카라.
Explusions of diplomats 바카라 both Western diplomats working in Russia and Russian diplomats working in Western countries 바카라 have become increasingly common since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Russian news outlet RBC counted last year that Western countries and Japan expelled a total 670 Russian diplomats between the beginning of 2022 and October 2023, while Moscow expelled 346 diplomats in response. According to RBC, it was more than in the previous 20 years combined.
In May, the UK expelled Russia's defence attache in London, alleging he was an undeclared intelligence officer, and closed several Russian diplomatic properties in Britain that it said were being used for spying.