US expelles two Russian officials

AFP, WASHINGTON: The United States has expelled two Russian officials over an attack on a US diplomat in Moscow last month by a policeman, the State Department said.
The news comes after complaints from Washington about what it deemed a mounting campaign of harassment and intimidation of American diplomats and their families in the Russian capital.
“On June 17, we expelled two Russian officials from the United States to respond to this attack,” department spokesman John Kirby said.
He said that on June 6, a Russian policeman attacked an accredited US diplomat entering the US embassy compound, after the US official identified himself.
“The action was unprovoked and it endangered the safety of our employee. The Russian claim that the policeman was protecting the embassy from an unidentified individual is simply untrue,” Kirby told reporters.
The Washington Post first reported the incident last month, saying the Russian Federal Security Service guard broke the diplomat’s shoulder in the struggle.
This week, Russian state-controlled television broadcast what appeared to be footage of the attack, saying it showed a Russian police guard stationed outside the embassy tackling a man it said was an undercover CIA officer attempting to enter the building without identifying himself.

 

US expelles two Russian officials

AFP, WASHINGTON: The United States has expelled two Russian officials over an attack on a US diplomat in Moscow last month by a policeman, the State Department said. The news comes after complaints from Washington about what it deemed a mounting campaign of harassment and intimidation of American diplomats and their families in the Russian capital. On June 17, we expelled two Russian officials from the United States to respond to this attack, department spokesman John Kirby said. He said that on June 6, a Russian policeman attacked an accredited US diplomat entering the US embassy compound, after the US official identified himself. The action was unprovoked and it endangered the safety of our employee. The Russian claim that the policeman was protecting the embassy from an unidentified individual is simply untrue, Kirby told reporters. The Washington Post first reported the incident last month, saying the Russian Federal Security Service guard broke the diplomats shoulder in the struggle. This week, Russian state-controlled television broadcast what appeared to be footage of the attack, saying it showed a Russian police guard stationed outside the embassy tackling a man it said was an undercover CIA officer attempting to enter the building without identifying himself.