The United Kingdom will expel the Russian defense attaché in the United Kingdom, described by London as an “undeclared military intelligence officer,” Interior Minister James Cleverly announced on Wednesday May 8. In a statement to Parliament devoted to “malicious activities” attributed to Russia, the head of the Home Office also announced that several Russian properties on British soil, which London suspects of having been used “for intelligence purposes”, would lose their diplomatic status.
James Cleverly also announced “new restrictions on Russian diplomatic visas”, including limiting the time Russian diplomats can spend in the UK. According to him, the measures put in place by London and its allies in recent years “already make the United Kingdom an extremely difficult place of operation for Russian intelligence services.”
“We will expel the Russian defense attaché, who is an undeclared military intelligence officer,” the head of the Home Office declared to MPs. A defense attaché is a member of the armed forces serving in an embassy and representing their country’s defense sector abroad.
UK to expect ‘accusations of Russophobia’
“Our message to Russia is clear: stop this illegal war, withdraw your troops from Ukraine, stop these malicious activities,” said James Cleverly, warning that the United Kingdom should expect “in the coming days” to “ accusations of Russophobia, conspiracy theories and hysteria on the part of the Russian government.”
At the end of April, the United Kingdom called for an “immediate end” to “malicious activities orchestrated by Russia” on its soil. The statement came after a 20-year-old British man was charged in London under the national security law for allegedly organizing attacks on “businesses linked to Ukraine.”
Then on May 2, NATO countries said they were “deeply concerned about the malicious activities” of Russia on their soil and assured that these would not “dissuade them from continuing to support Ukraine “.
