Russia moves to expel several US diplomats in tit-for-tat move, declares them 'persona non grata'

Russia has expelled several American diplomats from the US Embassy in Moscow and declared them "persona non grata", a State Department spokesperson has said, days after the US ousted Russian staff at the United Nations.

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Moscow: Russia has expelled several American diplomats from the US Embassy in Moscow and declared them "persona non grata", a State Department spokesperson has said. The US Embassy in Moscow on Wednesday (March 23, 2022) received a list of its diplomats that were declared "persona non grata". 

This development comes days after the US ousted Russian staff at the United Nations. Earlier last month, the US expelled 12 Russian diplomats at the country`s U.N. mission in New York over national security concerns and later announced it would oust an additional Russian at the U.N. who it said was a spy.

Meanwhile, Russia has denied all the allegations levied by the US and told Washington that it would throw out an unspecified number of American diplomats in response to the moves, Interfax news agency said.

"The American side was told very firmly that any hostile U.S. actions against Russia would provoke a decisive and comparable response," the agency said.

The move comes as the United States and its allies weigh further sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.

A State Department spokesperson said, "We can confirm that the U.S. Embassy received a list of diplomats declared `persona non grata` from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on March 23."

"This is Russia`s latest unhelpful and unproductive step in our bilateral relationship ... Now more than ever, it is critical that our countries have the necessary diplomatic personnel in place to facilitate communication between our governments," the spokesperson said.

Neither the spokesperson nor Interfax specified how many people were affected or when they would have to leave.

(With agency inputs)