Russia expelled the British defense attache in retaliation

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Russia will expel Britain’s defense attache in Moscow in retaliation for the expulsion of the country’s representative from London last week, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.

It confirmed that the decision was a tit-for-tat response after the UK Expel the Russian defense attachéwho the British government said was an “undeclared military intelligence officer”, last Wednesday.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Moscow considered the move “a politically motivated act with a clearly expressed anti-Russian character, causing irreparable damage to bilateral relations.” .

Russia’s response will “not be limited” to expulsions, the ministry added, without elaborating.

The British diplomat was given a week to leave the country.

Grant Shapps, British Defense Secretary, called Russia’s retaliation a “desperate” response. He said on X.

Last week, the British government criticized Moscow’s “malign activity” and announced it would remove the diplomatic status of British assets it believes Moscow has used to gather intelligence.

These include Seacox Heath in Hawkhurst, Sussex, and the Russian embassy’s trade and defense department in Highgate, north London.

British Home Secretary James Cleverly said the UK will also limit the duration of visas issued to Russian diplomats.

The crackdown comes after the UK imposed several rounds of sanctions on Russian companies and individuals, following Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The UK has often been at the forefront of countering Russian espionage in Europe.

Britain has taken pains to stress that its support for Ukraine is unchanged, and on Thursday the British Defense Secretary announced that London’s funding to Kyiv would continue at current levels “for as long as possible.” necessary time”.

The UK has so far pledged to spend £3bn a year on military aid to Ukraine until the end of the decade, as part of Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s roadmap to increase defense spending by 2, 5% of national income by 2030.

This week, Shapps said the UK would not try to “provoke” Kyiv into accepting a peace deal with Russia, following a report that UK Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron had spoken to Donald Trump about his candidacy The supposed Republican president is brokering a peace deal, if he gets to the White House, between Ukraine and Russia.