Status: October 6th, 2021 7:11 pm
NATO has excluded eight members of the Russian mission from the military alliance. Those affected worked for the Russian secret service, the alliance said. In addition, the number of accreditations was halved.
NATO has withdrawn eight Russian diplomats from their defense alliance accreditation. The members of the Russian mission to NATO are intelligence officials, the alliance justified the move. In addition, it had been decided to further reduce the maximum size of the Russian representation. Instead of 20, only ten people should be accredited in the future. The decision will take effect at the end of the month.
Relations between NATO and Russia are increasingly strained and there have been few official talks between the two sides in recent years. “We have increased our deterrence and defense in response to Russia’s aggressive actions while remaining open to meaningful dialogue,” said Brussels.
Further offer for dialogue
At the same time, NATO stressed that it would remain ready for dialogue. “Our policy towards Russia remains consistent,” said a spokesman. The NATO-Russia Council remains an important platform for dialogue. More than 18 months ago a new meeting of the council had been proposed. The ball is now in the field of the Russians.
Most recently, in 2018, in response to the nerve agent attack in Salisbury, UK, seven employees of the Russian NATO mission were deported. In addition, it was decided at the time to reduce the maximum size of the Russian delegation to NATO from 30 to 20 people.