The Russian Foreign Ministry announced on Thursday a decision to expel nine Finnish diplomats in retaliation for a similar move by Finland last month.
Finland Ambassador to the Russian Federation Antti Helantera has been told that the nine diplomats of the embassy in Moscow and consulate in St. Petersburg became personae non grata, tit for tat, according to a press release from the Russian ministry.
Helantera has been handed a strongly worded protest note over the hostile attitude of his country which could undermine the decades-long economic and trade cooperation.
Finland's accession to the NATO in April also posed a threat to the security of Russia and encouraged the Ukrainian regime to continue hostilities against Russia relying on Western arms supplies, the statement noted.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has also cancelled the accreditation for a new Finnish consul general in St. Petersburg and shut down the consulate.
Source: Kuwait News Agency
