Twelve members of the Russian diplomatic mission to the UN have been ordered to leave the United States by March 7, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia announced on Monday. They are accused of “espionage”, then declared the spokesperson for the American mission to the UN in a press release. Moscow, for its part, denounced an American “hostile approach”.
As he was regarding to give a press conference, the Russian ambassador asked the audience for a minute to respond to a telephone message. He then indicated that he had just learned of these expulsions notified by the United States. “It’s bad news,” he reacted, without specifying whether he was one of those expelled, or the reason given by the United States, whether or not it was linked to the war in Ukraine. He denounced a breach of the commitments of the United States, the host country, within the framework of the rules applicable to foreigners working at the UN.
“The United States has informed the United Nations and Russia’s permanent mission to the United Nations that we are initiating the process of expelling twelve intelligence agents from the Russian mission who have abused” their diplomatic status in the United States “by engaging in espionage activities contrary to our national security,” assured the spokesperson for the American mission to the UN in a press release. She pointed out that this measure had been in the works “for several months”, seeming to want to distinguish it from the American response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian mission to the UN has regarding 100 people
At the start of a UN Security Council meeting on the war, when Vassily Nebenzia had just announced the news to his 14 partners, the representative of the United States confirmed the information. “Diplomats who have been asked to leave the United States have engaged in activities inconsistent with their responsibilities and obligations as diplomats,” said Richard Mills, without further details.
He then asked Vassily Nebenzia, current president of his last meeting of the Security Council, to focus on the subject of the meeting, namely the humanitarian consequences of the invasion.
The Russian mission to the UN has around 100 people, according to a Russian diplomatic source.
