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Russia to Respond Friday to US Expulsion of Russian Diplomats
Russia is likely to announce details Friday on its response action to the US expulsion of 50 Russian diplomats, a Russian Foreign Ministry press service official told Xinhua in a telephone interview Thursday night.
Asked "whether Russia has decided to expel an equal number of US diplomats as a response to the US move," the official said, " No one will give you a definite answer on this question tonight, and everything will be known tomorrow."
The official actually denied earlier CNN reports that Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov had announced the expulsion of 50 US diplomats.
The US State Department on Thursday formally expelled four Russian diplomats accused of direct involvement with a former FBI agent spying for Moscow and told Moscow it expected an additional 46 to leave by July.
Two other Russian diplomats suspected of links to the FBI spying case had left recently after U.S. investigators determined they were involved in the case, said the department.
The expulsions mark the most serious spy row between the US and Russia since the end of the Cold War.
Ivanov told the national RTR television channel on Thursday that "Moscow will give an adequate answer (to the US move). You will not have to wait long."
Russia will "firmly and consistently advocate its national interests," he said.
The minister also said the Russian leadership hoped the people, who want to push the US back to the Cold War period featuring confrontation, would not take the upper hand in the US government.
Ivanov made the statement shortly after the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a press release, protesting against "the absolutely groundless decision of the U.S. side to expel a group of Russian diplomats from the United States."
According to the press release, the protest was expressed to US Ambassador to Moscow James Collins when he was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry on the same day.
The Russian side stressed that "the unfriendly action aimed at aggravating Russian-American relations will naturally not remain without consequences and an adequate reply (from Russia) will follow."
Russia Protests Against US Expulsion of Russian Diplomats Russia will respond adequately to the unfriendly move made by the United States, which announced the expulsion of a group of Russian diplomats, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov told the national RTR television channel Thursday.
Russia will "firmly and consistently advocate its national interests," he said.
The minister also said the Russian leadership hoped the people, who want to push the U.S. back to the Cold War period featuring confrontation, would not take the upper hand in the U.S. government
Ivanov made the statement shortly after the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a press release protesting Washington against "the absolutely groundless decision of the U.S. side to expel a group of Russian diplomats from the United States."
According to the press release, the protest was lodged with U.S. Ambassador to Moscow James Collins when he was summoned to Russian Foreign ministry on the same day.
The Russian side stressed that "the unfriendly action aimed at aggravating Russian-American relations will naturally not remain without consequences and an adequate reply (from Russia) will follow."
The U.S. CBS television reported Wednesday that the U.S. had asked nearly 50 Russian diplomats to leave for alleged espionage.
An official representative of the U.S. State Department confirmed Thursday that the U.S. had declared four Russian diplomats "persona non grata."
The official also confirmed that the expulsion of the diplomats was directly connected with an arrest last month of FBI agent Robert Hanssen, who is charged with working for the former Soviet Union and Russia for 15 years.
Ivanov said earlier today in the ORT public television that the U.S. move had no ground, and can only be regarded as a political step and an unfriendly action against Russia.
He said he regretted that the case had not been settled through special contacts and channels.
The minister also termed a decision by the U.S. State Department to invite the so-called "Foreign Minister" in the rebel Chechen government for talks as "yet another link in the chain of unfriendly actions against Russia."
Washington should be well aware that "U.S. officials will be meeting a representative of terrorists, who sow death and violence, and not only in Chechnya", he warned.
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