Berlin decides to expel Russian diplomats en masse, Russia sends huge plane for them
German authorities will perform another mass expulsion of Russian diplomats on April 22, Russia’s Foreign Ministry told state news agency TASS.
Germany expelled over 20 Russian diplomats, according to Russian state news RIA-Novosti.
Moscow calls Berlin's actions "hostile."
Russia will expel at least 20 German diplomats in a tit-for-tat response, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said. The maximum number of German diplomatic staff will also be limited, she added.
Russia officially informed German Ambassador to Russia, Geza Andreas von Geyr, in the on April 5.
It isn’t clear whether the diplomatic staff have already left the country.
A Russian Il-96-300 aircraft carrying senior officials was spotted at Berlin airport this morning, DW news wrote. The aircraft received a special diplomatic permit as EU airspace is closed for Russian planes following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Germany's MFA confirmed to journalists that Il-96-300 aircraft came from Moscow to Berlin to collect the expelled diplomats.
Germany was going to expel more than 30 Russian diplomats for allegedly recruiting German informants, Fokus reported at the end of March.
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