Abroad|International relations
According to Russia, this is a retaliation against the deportations of Russian diplomats by Finland.
Russian The Foreign Ministry says it will expel two Finnish diplomats. The matter was first reported by the news agency Reuters, and later the deportation was confirmed by the Finnish Embassy in Moscow and the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
According to the Russian Ministry, the deportation is a countermeasure to the deportations carried out by Finland against two Russian diplomats. According to a press release from the Russian Ministry, the deportations carried out by Finland are “unfounded”, in addition to which they are part of the “EU sanctions campaign against Russia”.
In its press release, the Russian ministry also condemned “Finland’s offensive attitude towards Russia”. The release mentions, among other things, Finland’s arms exports to Ukraine, which, according to the ministry, is proof of this attitude.
Diplomats have two weeks to leave Russia, the Finnish Foreign Ministry said. It also confirmed that Russia’s decision is not related to the deportees’ own activities, but is a countermeasure to the deportations carried out by Finland.
Finland expelled in April, two members of the posted staff of the Russian embassy. In addition, one of the employees of the Russian Embassy was refused a visa extension.
Russia has traditionally responded to the deportations of its embassy staff with a similar number of deportations.
Several European Union countries have recently expelled Russian diplomats in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
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