Belgian diplomats expelled from Moscow

According to RIA Novosti , Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium Mark Michilsen was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry on April 19 to announce the expulsion of diplomats.

“He was strongly protested in connection with the provocative decision of the authorities of the Kingdom to expel 21 employees of Russian foreign missions in Belgium,” the news agency quotes the text of the document posted on the website of the Russian diplomatic department.

According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, in a note declaring Belgian diplomats “persona non grata”, employees of the Belgian Embassy in Moscow are ordered to leave the territory of the Russian Federation before the end of the day on May 3.

Earlier it was reported that the Russian Foreign Ministry declared 18 employees of the EU Delegation in Moscow persona non grata. In the near future they need to leave the territory of the Russian Federation.

As specified in the Russian diplomatic department, the measure was taken in response to the expulsion of diplomats from the Russian Permanent Mission to the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community.

Recall that earlier a number of European countries announced the expulsion of Russian diplomats against the backdrop of a military special operation in Ukraine. Russian diplomats were expelled from Poland, Bulgaria , Germany, Slovenia, France, Italy, Spain, Greece, Norway and other countries.

Latvia and Lithuania, in turn, reported a significant reduction in diplomatic relations with Russia. Against this background, Russian ambassadors were expelled from these countries.