MOSCOW, March 26 (Itar-Tass) - RIA Novosti. An unprecedented diplomatic blow was inflicted on Russia on Monday by more than a dozen countries led by the United States - in European and overseas capitals on Monday almost simultaneously announced the expulsion of Russian diplomats in connection with the "Skripal case"; Washington gave a week for the return of 60 diplomats, of which 12 - the staff of the Russian Mission to the United Nations, it was decided to close the Russian consulate in Seattle.

In Moscow, they reacted to an unprecedented attack, saying that "an unfriendly step will not pass without a trace," and that Washington "does not understand anything except force."

The demarche of Western states was in response to the situation around the "case of Skripal." In the British Salisbury on March 4, British spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Julia were poisoned. London claims that the Russian state is involved in the poisoning of Fiddles with substance A234, Russia categorically denies it.

Parade of applications

At 16.00 Moscow time, news agencies' newspapes turned red from messages marked "urgently", coming from abroad. The US decided to expel tens of "Russian intelligence officers" and close the consulate general of the Russian Federation in Seattle in solidarity with the British authorities in the "Skripal case", an official from the US administration told reporters.

According to an official from the White House, the United States sends 48 Russian diplomats and 12 members of the Russian Mission to the United Nations, only 60 people - to leave the States they are given seven days. In addition, Washington said that it was ready to take new measures against Moscow in the event of Russia's response to the expulsion of diplomats and the closure of the consulate in Seattle.

US Ambassador to Russia John Huntsman in a video posted on Twitter said that "today's actions make the US a safer place by limiting Russia's ability to spy on American citizens and conduct secret activities that threaten US national security."

The former deputy secretary-general of the United Nations, chairman of the Russian public council for international cooperation and public diplomacy, Sergei Ordzhonikidze, noted that he can not recall such synchronized attacks by a number of countries, "when no one has proven a nobody's fault."

However, speaking of the decision of the US authorities to send the Russian mission to the UN, Ordzhonikidze called such a step "a pure violation of international law." "These employees are not accredited with the State Department," he said.

In addition to the US, a number of EU and NATO countries announced the expulsion of Russian diplomats. Canada informed about the expulsion of four employees of the Russian embassy and the Consulate General in connection with the "Skripal case". Sweden sends one diplomat, Germany - four, Poland - four, Latvia - one diplomat and one Aeroflot employee, Lithuania - three diplomats, Italy - two, France - four, Estonia - one, Czech Republic - three, Netherlands - two, Romania - one, Finland - one, Denmark - two, Croatia - one, Sweden - one, Albania - two, Spain - two.

Ukrainian solidarity

Kiev decided to show solidarity with European and overseas counterparts and send 13 Russian diplomats.

"In response to the cynical chemical attack in Salisbury, Great Britain, Ukraine, in a spirit of solidarity with our British partners and transatlantic allies, and in coordination with the EU countries, decided to expel 13 Russian diplomats from the few remaining ones from the Ukrainian territory. our diplomatic relations with the Russian Federation have been de facto frozen, "President Petro Poroshenko wrote on his Facebook page.

Thus, out of all countries only 112 Russian employees are subject to expulsion.

Reaction of the Russian Foreign Ministry

The reaction of the Russian Foreign Ministry did not take long. The first to attack from the US responded Russian ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov. He called the deportation of Russian diplomats a serious blow to the quantitative and qualitative composition of diplomatic workers.

He said that he expressed his firm protest against the illegal actions of the United States and stressed that "to date there is no evidence of the Russian Federation's interference in the investigation of the case as such, nor about Russia's involvement in the tragedy that occurred in Salisbury."

The ambassador complained that "Washington does not understand anything other than force." "I believe that the answer should be adequate, Moscow will take the appropriate decision, but I think, even as a Russian citizen, that such unreasoned, provocative steps can not be left unpunished," he stressed.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued an official statement expressing strong protest over the decision of a number of EU and NATO member states to expel Russian diplomats.

"It goes without saying that this unfriendly step of this group of countries will not pass without a trace and we will react to it," the Foreign Ministry said, stressing that they consider the actions of foreign countries as an unfriendly step that does not meet the tasks and interests of establishing the causes and finding the perpetrators the Salisbury incident.

Until they expel

Despite the fact that last week the leaders of the EU countries expressed their solidarity with the assessment of the British government in the "Skripal case", a number of EU countries did not announce the expulsion of Russian diplomats: Slovakia, Hungary, Austria, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Greece, Malta, Luxembourg, Belgium, Ireland, Portugal, Cyprus.

Slovenia opposed the expulsion of Russian embassy personnel. The Slovenian Prime Minister in the technical mandate of Miro Tserar, according to a Delo portal, said that the official Ljubljana will not expel Russian diplomats in connection with the "Skripal affair".

The representative of the Austrian government, Peter Launsky-Tiffenthal, told RIA Novosti on Monday that Austria will not send Russian diplomats on the background of the "Skripal case" and intends to keep open channels of dialogue with Moscow. At the same time, Launsky-Tiffenthal noted that Vienna supports the decision to withdraw the EU ambassador from Moscow.

Slovakia on Tuesday invited the Russian Ambassador to Bratislava. "After careful consideration of the options, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic decided to urgently call the Russian Ambassador to Slovakia on Tuesday March 27 and ask him for an explanation of the incident." The development of the situation, like Russia's response to the challenges addressed to it by the EU states, including Slovakia, will affect further steps, which in this case we are ready to consider, "the Slovak diplomat told RIA Novosti.

Turn around

According to the veteran of Soviet intelligence, writer and publicist Mikhail Lyubimov, Washington's decision to expel 60 Russian diplomats has become stupid and is a manifestation of the dependence of US President Donald Trump on anti-Russian circles in the United States.

According to Lyubimov, Russian intelligence will find an opportunity to work effectively in the US and beyond, despite the forthcoming expulsion of diplomats from the Russian Federation.

"Turn around, this business is gainful," - said Lyubimov RIA Novosti.

He recalled how in 1971 the United Kingdom expelled 105 Soviet diplomats, including foreign intelligence officers of the USSR KGB and the Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff of the USSR Armed Forces.

"Of course, that strike on our intelligence was strong, but we continued to supply information to the authorities and the authorities were satisfied." The information damage was small, "said Lyubimov, who in 1974-1976 was deputy chief of the Anglo-Scandinavian foreign intelligence department of the KGB and led the organization of work on the UK.

In the British Salisbury on March 4, British spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Julia were poisoned. London claims that the Russian state is involved in the poisoning of Fiddles with substance A234, Russia categorically denies it.

Director of the Department for Nonproliferation and Arms Control of the Russian Foreign Ministry Vladimir Ermakov said that Moscow considers an attack on Russian citizens on the territory of Great Britain a terrorist act. At the same time, he said, London either directed the attack on the Fiddles, or is unable to provide protection against the terrorist attack on its territory.

The diplomat added that London continues without explaining the reasons for refusing Moscow access to the investigation materials, and admitted that in the time after the Salisbury incident, the real evidence could have already disappeared.

Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stressed that Moscow was fully prepared to cooperate with Britain on the "Skripal case", if London would comply with all the procedures required in such cases, as prescribed in the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia's accusation of involvement in the poisoning of Skripal is nonsense, since no one would allow himself such, especially on the eve of presidential elections and the holding of the World Cup.

Putin stressed that Russia has no chemical weapons - it was destroyed under the supervision of international observers. He also said that Russia is ready to cooperate in the investigation of the case of Skripal, but for this there must be an interest on the other hand.

Link: https://ria.ru/politics/20180326/1517319128.html