---
title: "Russia expels two British diplomats as it negotiates to restore US ties"
description: "MOSCOW, March 10 (Reuters) - Russia accused two British diplomats of spying on Monday and gave them two weeks to leave the country, maintaining the downward trajectory of diplomatic relations with Europe even as it negotiates to restore ties with the United States."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "Diplomacy"
author: "Reuters"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/reuters/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-10-russia-expels-two-british-diplomats-as-it-negotiates-to-restore-us-ties/"
published: "2025-03-10T12:23:27"
updated: "2025-03-10T12:23:29"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 295
---

# Russia expels two British diplomats as it negotiates to restore US ties

> MOSCOW, March 10 (Reuters) - Russia accused two British diplomats of spying on Monday and gave them two weeks to leave the country, maintaining the downward trajectory of diplomatic relations with Europe even as it negotiates to restore ties with the United States.

By Reuters · Published 10 March 2025, 14:23 SAST · Updated 10 March 2025, 14:23 SAST

## Key points
- In a diplomatic game of hot potato that’s gone cold, Russia has expelled two British diplomats, claiming they were up to no good, while the UK remains tight-lipped, perhaps hoping that silence is golden in the face of escalating tensions over Ukraine.
- The British embassy has not responded to allegations regarding the expulsion of two diplomats from Russia, marking a significant diplomatic tension.
- These expulsions are the first of Western diplomats since the US-Russia talks aimed at restoring embassy staff began, amidst ongoing geopolitical strains.
- Russia claims the expelled diplomats engaged in intelligence activities, while the UK maintains its support for Ukraine, further aggravating relations.
- Diplomatic ties between Britain and Russia have deteriorated sharply since the Ukraine conflict, with both nations imposing reciprocal expulsions and sanctions.

## Content

There was no immediate response to a request for comment from the British embassy, which has in the past rejected similar allegations against British diplomats in Moscow.

The pair appear to be the first Western diplomats to be expelled from Russia since Moscow and Washington opened talks on restoring staff at US and Russian embassies depleted by tit-for-tat expulsions, part of President Donald Trump's rapprochement with the Kremlin that has alarmed European allies.

Similar expulsions have sharply curtailed the functioning of Russian embassies across the West and Western missions in Russia since Moscow launched its full-blown assault on Ukraine in 2022.

Russia's Federal Security Service said the two diplomats had provided false information when obtaining permission to enter Russia, and it had "identified signs of intelligence and subversive work" they had carried out, harming Russian security.

The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned a representative of the British embassy over the expulsions.

Britain's continued support of Ukraine's military and Prime Minister Keir Starmer's recent statements about putting British boots on the ground and planes in the air in Ukraine as part of a potential peacekeeping force have angered Moscow.

Russian police in February opened a criminal investigation into an alleged assault on a freelance journalist by a person believed to be an employee of the British embassy, an allegation London dismissed as "an interference operation" designed to intimidate legitimate diplomats.

That announcement came a day after Britain announced it was expelling a Russian diplomat in retaliation for Moscow throwing out a British diplomat last November.

Relations between Britain and Russia have plunged to post-Cold War lows since the start of the Ukraine war. Britain has joined successive waves of sanctions against Russia and provided arms to Ukraine.

(Reporting by ReutersWriting by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Peter Graff)