Russia Expels British Diplomats For Spy Accusations

JAKARTA - Russia expelled a British diplomat on charges of spying.

The FSB security service said the diplomat deliberately provided false information when he entered the country.

"At the same time, the Russian FSB has found signs of the diplomat doing intelligence and subversive work that threatens the security of the Russian Federation," he said.

The British Embassy in Moscow did not respond to a request for comment.

TASS news agency quoted Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying the ministry had summoned the British ambassador, a move often used by the host government to express its strong protests.

According to the FSB, the British diplomat is a substitute for one of the six British diplomats who was expelled earlier this year, also on espionage charges.

Relations between Britain and Russia have fallen to post-Cold War lows since the start of the war in Ukraine. Britain has followed a wave of consecutive sanctions against Russia and given Ukraine weapons.

Russia said Ukraine fired a British Storm Shadow cruise missile into its territory last week for the first time. Russia responded by launching a new hypersonic missile into the city of Dnipro in Ukraine on November 21.