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WASHINGTON, March 31 (Itar-Tass) - RIA Novosti. American special services are trying to force Russian diplomats expelled from the United States to betray their homeland, Russian ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov specified.

Earlier, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported on the sharp activation of provocative actions against Russian diplomats in the United States: "American intelligence agencies are making feverish attempts to contact them" and offer "help" in exchange for informal relations "on a mutually beneficial basis."

"We know about the approaches of the US special services, which, diplomatically speaking, are trying to establish informal relations with our diplomats, and in fact to force them to betray their country," Antonov told journalists on Friday.

"I want to say that these are not isolated cases, and I have to report them to Moscow," the ambassador added.

Earlier, US authorities demanded that 60 Russian diplomats leave the country, and also close the Russian Consulate General in Seattle. The decision was made on the pretext that diplomats allegedly were engaged in espionage in the United States, as well as in solidarity with the British authorities in the "Skripal case".

"To date, we have not received any intelligible explanations about the reasons for the expulsion of Russian diplomats ... As you know, the official explanation of why our consulate in Seattle is being closed is that our diplomats are supposed to receive information about the activities of the US naval base. I have a simple and clear question: but what about the work of the Skripal? " Said Antonov.

According to him, the answer arises that the "business of the Skripal" is in essence "just an excuse for this splash of Russophobia, for the Americans to take tough inappropriate provocative steps in relation to Russian diplomats and Russian diplomatic property."

"For today, we have not received any information from our American partners on the basis of which they came to the conclusion that Russia or its representatives were involved in illegal activities on the territory of the UK All that we heard is the words" we think " "we are sure," and when I ask the question, can they give at least one fact that Russia is responsible for that tragedy - and this is indeed a tragedy in Salisbury - there is no answer, "the diplomat said.

Antonov added that the question of whether it is possible in the US court situation when a person is convicted on the basis of assumptions, his interlocutors "only smiled in response."

Link: https://ria.ru/world/20180331/1517658961.html