Russia declares British defense attache in Moscow ‘persona non grata’

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Russia on Thursday declared the UK’s defense attache in Moscow as “persona non grata.”

A statement by the Russian Foreign Ministry said that a representative of the British Embassy in Moscow was summoned to the ministry earlier in the day, where it lodged a strong protest over the UK’s decision to expel the country’s defense attache in London.

“We emphasized that we regard this step as a politically motivated action with a pronounced Russophobic character, causing irreparable damage to bilateral relations,” the statement further said.

It also said that the UK’s defense attache must leave Russia within a week.

“Our reaction to the unfriendly anti-Russian actions of the British side announced on May 8 does not end with this measure. The initiators of the escalation will be informed about further retaliatory steps,” it added.

On May 8, the British government announced that it expelled Russia’s defense attache, which it defined as “an undeclared spy,” in response to a "growing threat" and as part of a major package of measures to "target and dismantle Russian intelligence-gathering operations" in the UK.