U.S. takes over Russian consulate in S.F.

Federal officials searched and took control of the Russian consular residence in San Francisco Monday, following the closure of the consulate in September.

The former home of the Russian consul general and his family, located just paces from the Presidio, was inspected by State Department officials as security guards stood outside the two-story brownstone building. The residents had left the premises before it was searched, meeting an Oct. 1 deadline.

“We conducted a walkthrough to secure the residential portions of the buildings and confirm that all residents had left the premises,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement.

Russian trade offices in Washington, D.C., and New York also were ordered closed by the State Department last month, escalating tension between the United States and Russia. The Trump administration’s order to shutter the foreign posts followed Moscow’s decision to expel some U.S. diplomatic personnel in Russia.

A Russian diplomat who was at the consulate residence Monday and watched as multiple plainclothed officials entered the property said the action violated international law.

“It’s a gross violation of the fundamental diplomatic and consular conventions,” said Nikolay Pukalov, head of the the consular division at the Russian Embassy in Washington, D.C. “This is a completely and totally unlawful and flagrant act.”

Pukalov said that U.S. officials removed and replaced the locks at the residence.

“They’re searching it, they’re doing whatever they want, but they have absolutely no right to be there because that’s not their property,” Pukalov said.

A State Department spokesperson said they will “secure and maintain the properties” and “entry or access to the office space will be granted only by the Department of State.”

The spokesperson declined to comment on Pukalov’s claims.