Russia has expelled 10 Norwegian diplomats in a retaliatory move after Norway expelled Russian diplomats. The decision was made in response to Norway’s “unfriendly” actions against Russian diplomats. This latest move will further strain relations between Russia and Norway.
The Norwegian foreign ministry has stated that the expulsion of the Russian diplomats was due to their violation of Norwegian laws and regulations. However, Russia has claimed that the move was a result of pressure from the United States.
The Russian foreign ministry released a statement saying that “Norway’s decision to expel Russian diplomats without any reasonable explanation is absolutely unacceptable.” The statement also accused Norway of following the United States’ lead in its actions against Russia.
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This is not the first time that Russia has expelled Norwegian diplomats. In 2018, Russia expelled one Norwegian diplomat in response to Norway’s expulsion of a Russian diplomat over the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal in the UK.
Norway is a member of NATO and has recently increased its military cooperation with the United States. This has led to tensions with Russia, which sees NATO as a threat to its security.
The expulsions come at a time of heightened tensions between Russia and the West. Russia has been accused of interfering in the 2016 US Presidential elections and the UK’s Brexit referendum. The United States and European Union have imposed sanctions on Russia in response.
The expulsion of the Norwegian diplomats is just the latest move in a series of retaliatory actions between Russia and the West. It remains to be seen if the situation will escalate further or if the two sides will seek to de-escalate tensions.
Norway has expressed regret over the expulsion of the Russian diplomats and has stated that it hopes to maintain good relations with Russia. However, it remains to be seen how Russia will respond to this latest move.
