Moscow expels the deputy head of the US mission, and Washington pledges to respond
On Thursday, a US State Department spokesman confirmed that Russia had expelled Bart Gorman, the deputy chief of the US mission to Russia, who was the most senior official at the US Embassy in Moscow after the ambassador and a key member of the embassy's senior leadership team.
The spokesman described this measure as "unjustified and we consider it an escalatory step."
"We are looking at our response," he said.
The spokesman added that the deputy chief of mission has not finished his tour yet and has a valid visa and has been in Russia for less than three years.
For its part, the US embassy in Moscow said that the expulsion of the deputy ambassador is an "escalatory step that will be answered," according to our correspondent in the Russian capital.
The State Department spokesperson called on Russia to end the baseless expulsions of American diplomats and staff and work productively to rebuild our missions.
"Now more than ever it is of paramount importance that our countries have the necessary diplomatic personnel to facilitate communication between our two governments," the spokesman concluded.
He stressed that Russia's actions led to the American mission to Russia being at much lower levels than the Russian mission in the United States.
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