Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The Russian government expelled 10 diplomats from the United States (US) and begged to leave the country, Friday (16/4/2021). This was in retaliation for the expulsion of an equal number of Russian diplomats by President Joe Biden’s administration just the day before.
The measures, approved by President Vladimir Putin, are in response to US sanctions previously imposed on Russia, including restrictions on sovereign debt.
It is a swift retaliation from Moscow and hurts US interests by reducing its diplomatic footprint, but the door to dialogue remains open. The Putin administration vowed not to kill Biden’s proposed idea of a second summit.
“Now is the time for the US to show their common sense, otherwise a series of decisions that are more painful than us (Russia) will be implemented,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
It also said the Russian side was preparing options for potentially more painful sanctions on US businesses and the economy in Russia, shrinking its diplomatic corps in Russia to just 300, but being held in temporary detention for now.
Russian-US relations have slumped further to their lowest level after last month’s cold war after Biden confirmed Putin was a “killer”. As a result, Moscow immediately recalled its ambassador to Washington for consultations. The ambassador still hasn’t returned nearly a month later.
The Russian foreign ministry said John Sullivan, the US ambassador to Russia, must also return home.
Washington says the sanctions themselves are retaliation for Russian interference in the 2020 US presidential election, cyber hacking, repression of Ukraine and other alleged malicious acts.
Russia denies all of the US accusations said a State Department representative by email.
“It is not in our interest to enter into an escalation cycle, but we reserve the right to respond to any Russian retaliation against the United States,” he said.
Moscow’s response has been largely vengeful. They expelled 10 US diplomats and barred 8 top US officials from entering the country over allegations of their contribution to an “anti-Russian course”.
Those banned include FBI Director Christopher Wray, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, US Attorney General Merrick Garland, and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
There were also Federal Prison Bureau Director Michael Carvajal, Domestic Policy Board Director Susan Rice, John Bolton, former US National Security Advisor and former CIA chief Robert James Woolsey.
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