US, EU to expel over 100 Russian diplomats
More than 100 Russian dilpomats affected, Moscow calls action ‘provocative gesture’; US says no message for India
The US said on Monday it would expel 60 Russian diplomats for a nerve agent attack on a former Russian spy in Britain, for which it has blamed Moscow. British PM Theresa May said 18 countries had announced plans to expel over 100 Russian officials.
The United States said on Monday it would expel 60 Russian diplomats, joining governments across Europe in punishing the Kremlin for a nerve agent attack on a former Russian spy in Britain that they have blamed on Moscow.
It was the strongest action that US President Donald Trump had taken against Russia since coming to office. He has been criticised by Democrats and members of his own Republican Party for failing to be tough enough on Russia over allegations of Russian meddling in the US electoral system including the 2016 presidential campaign.
A senior Trump administration official, however, said the expulsions were not intended at sending any message to a country like India which has an equally strong relationship with both Moscow.
British Prime Minister Theresa May, welcoming the show of solidarity, said 18 countries had announced plans to expel Russian officials. Those included 14 European Union countries, as well as Ukraine, Canada and Albania. In total, Monday’s announcements affected more than 100 Russian diplomats — the biggest Western expulsion of Russian diplomats since the height of the Cold War.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry called the actions a “provocative gesture”. The Kremlin spokesman said the West’s response was a “mistake” and that Russian President Vladimir Putin would make a final decision about Russia’s response.
Moscow has denied being behind the attack on Sergei Skripal and his daughter in the southern English city of Salisbury on March 4. Skripal, 66, and his 33-year-old daughter Yulia were found unconscious on a public bench in a shopping centre, and remain critically ill in hospital.
The US officials said the scale of the expulsions was based not only on the expansion of Russian espionage in the United States, but also on its increasing focus on critical infrastructure targets such as electrical grids, financial networks, transportation and healthcare.
We welcome today's actions by our allies, which clearly demonstrate that we all stand shoulder to shoulder in sending the strongest signal to Russia that it cannot continue to flout international law”