As noted in the department, in May 2019, the Ukrainian special services “staged another provocation, groundlessly declaring an employee of the Consulate General of Russia in Lviv” persona non grata.
It is indicated that the necessary evidence of unlawful activity “was not presented as usual”, Interfax reports.
"In response to such an unfriendly and unmotivated move by Kiev, the Russian side was forced, on a reciprocal basis, to declare a non-grata employee of the Consulate General of Ukraine in St. Petersburg," the statement said.
Earlier, the SBU announced a "Russian diplomat who worked under diplomatic cover", whom the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine declared persona non grata.