Moscow [Russia], April 23: Russia is expelling over 20 German diplomats, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told state-owned channel Zvezda, on Saturday. She did not provide an exact figure. This follows reports from the ministry that Berlin had decided on a "mass" expulsion of Russian diplomats. It remained unclear, however, how many Russians were expelled and how many have already left the country.
When approached for comment, the German Foreign Office initially only confirmed that the government had held talks with Russia in recent weeks on the presence of staff at the respective missions abroad "with the aim of reducing the Russian intelligence presence in Germany. The departure of Russian embassy staff today is related to this," it said.
Zakharova had announced that Moscow would respond in kind to the "mass expulsion" of Russian diplomats from Germany, saying that it had been Berlin that had taken the first "hostile" step. Germany and Russia have repeatedly expelled each other's diplomats in the past.
Source: Qatar Tribune