Russia orders U.S. diplomat cuts in sanctions retaliation
MOSCOW — Russia’s Foreign Ministry ordered a reduction in U.S. diplomats in Russia on Friday and said it was closing down a U.S. recreational retreat in response to fresh sanctions against the Kremlin.
The U.S. Senate approved a new package of financial sanctions Friday against Russia, Iran and North Korea and sent it to President Donald Trump.
The legislation bars Trump from easing or waiving the penalties on Russia unless Congress agrees. It is aimed at punishing Moscow for interfering in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and for its military interventions in Ukraine and Syria, where the Kremlin has backed President Bashar Assad.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said, in response, it is ordering the U.S. Embassy in Russia to reduce the number of its diplomats by Sept. 1. Russia will also close down the embassy’s recreational retreat on the outskirts of Mosco was well as warehouse facilities.
The ministry said the number was being cut to 455 diplomats. U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Maria Olson could not say how many people had to leave to meet the requirements.
Olson said Ambassador John Tefft “expressed his strong disappointment and protest” with the move and passed the Russian government’s notification to Washington for review.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in a phone call later Friday that Moscow was forced to respond to what he described as “illegal sanctions against Russia, libelous statements against it, a massive expulsion of diplomats and expropriation of our diplomatic property.”
Lavrov added, however, that Moscow was ready to “normalize the bilateral ties with the U.S. and cooperate on important international issues.”