US vows to expel 60 Russian diplomats
THE US said 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.
British Prime Minister Theresa May, welcoming the show of solidarity, said 18 countries had announced plans to expel Russian officials. Those included 14 EU countries, as well as Ukraine, Canada and Albania. In total, yesterday’s announcements affected more than 100 Russian diplomats – the biggest Western expulsion of Russian diplomats since the height of the Cold War.
British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson tweeted that the “extraordinary international response by our allies stands in history as the largest collective expulsion of Russian intelligence officers ever and will help defend our shared security”.
May said the co-ordinated measures “clearly demonstrate that we all stand shoulder to shoulder in sending the strongest signal to Russia that it cannot continue to flout international law”.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry called the actions a “provocative gesture”. The Kremlin spokesperson 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.
Yesterday’s wave of expulsions came after EU leaders said last week that evidence presented by May of Russian involvement in the attack was a solid basis for further action.
The staff expelled by the US included 12 intelligence officers from Russia’s mission to the UN headquarters in New York, a senior administration official told reporters. Trump also ordered the closure of the Russian consulate in Seattle.
“To the Russian government we say: when you attack our friends, you will face serious consequences,” one of the US officials briefing reporters said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The individuals concerned and their families have been given a week to leave the US, according to the official.
US lawmakers largely welcomed Trump’s move yesterday.
All the Russians picked for expulsion from the US have been identified as intelligence officers, according to US officials familiar with the expulsions.