Russia to expel UK defence attache in a tit-for-tat move
Al Jazeera
Moscow declares A. T. Coghill persona non grata in response to London expelling Russian defence attache over espionage allegations.
Russia has declared The United Kingdom’s defence attache persona non grata and gave the diplomat a week to leave the country in response to London expelling the Russian defence attache earlier this month over spying allegations.
Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that it summoned a representative of the British Embassy in Moscow on Thursday to express its “strong protest in connection with the unfriendly and groundless decision” to expel the Russian attache from London.
“We emphasized that we regard this step as a politically motivated action of clearly Russophobic nature, which is causing irreparable damage to bilateral relations,” the statement read.
“The defence attache at the British Embassy in Moscow, A. T. Coghill, has been declared persona non grata. He must leave the territory of the Russian Federation within a week,” the ministry said.
UK Secretary of Defence Grant Shapps called Russia’s expulsion of Coghill “a desperate move”.
