The Russian Ambassador Alexander Petrov was summoned to the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) on Thursday and a note was submitted to him stating that the diplomat of the Russian Embassy had been declared a “persona non grata” and was therefore being expelled from Estonia.
“This is a response to the expulsion of our consul from Russia, as accepted in international diplomacy,” the Estonian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“We hope that this episode will not harm the bilateral relations between Estonia and Russia. Estonia is still interested in good and constructive neighborhood relations, ”said the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“It is very unfortunate that Russia is still choosing an unfriendly way of communicating with the European Union and its member states,” the statement said, not mentioning the name or position of the expelled Russian diplomat.
Russia has already reportedly expelled the Estonian consul in St. Petersburg, Marta Leti, on July 7, accused by Moscow of espionage. The day before, Leti was briefly detained by the Russian Federal Security Service.
On July 7, the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called Lete’s detention a provocation.
“Marta Leti was detained after a working meeting at the St. Petersburg State Polytechnic Institute. He was detained for an hour and a half, ”Lemmika said. “The employee of FDD is a production, the accusations are unfounded. This is another example of Russia’s lack of interest in friendly relations with its neighbors. “
It is common practice in world diplomacy to respond to the expulsion of a diplomat with the same.
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