Russia: Russia is expelling Britain’s defence attaché to Moscow in a diplomatic tit-for-tat after the UK accused Russia of sponsoring espionage and hacking attacks against top British officials in a long-term campaign of “malign activity.”
Adrian Coghill, the British defence attaché, was labelled “persona non grata” by the Russian foreign ministry. Within a week, he has to depart from Russian Federation territory.
It was a reaction to the UK’s decision on May 8 to remove diplomatic status from the Russian-owned Seacox Heath property in Sussex and the Russian embassy’s trade and defence section in Highgate. The UK had accused the Russian defence attaché of being a “undeclared military intelligence officer.” Along with these additional limitations, the UK also extended the period of stay that Russian diplomats are permitted to enter the nation on diplomatic visas.
The UK claimed the properties were used for intelligence gathering and charged Russia with funding a Bulgarian spy network operating in the country, encouraging five more people to engage in “hostile activity in the UK in order to benefit a foreign state – namely Russia,” as well as hacking UK lawmakers and leaking trade documents between the US and the UK.
The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement that “initiators of the escalation will be informed about further retaliatory steps” as part of its planned actions against the British diplomatic representation in Russia.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2014, the annexation of Crimea in 2014, and the Novichok poisoning attack in Salisbury in 2018, relations have been tense. Moscow claims that the UK’s arms and intelligence transfers to Ukraine run the risk of involving London as a direct participant in the conflict.
TRENDING | UK to expel Russian defence attaché amid spying allegations
