Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General, is interviewed extracurricular the United Nations headquarters, Tuesday, Sept. 21, 2021, during the 76th Session of the U.N. General Assembly successful New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, Pool)

Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General, is interviewed extracurricular the United Nations headquarters, Tuesday, Sept. 21, 2021, during the 76th Session of the U.N. General Assembly successful New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, Pool) (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

BRUSSELS – NATO connected Wednesday expelled 8 members of Russia’s ngo to the subject alliance, saying that they were secretly moving arsenic quality officers and halved the size of Moscow’s squad capable to enactment astatine its headquarters.

“We tin corroborate that we person withdrawn the accreditation of 8 members of the Russian Mission to NATO, who were undeclared Russian quality officers,” a NATO authoritative said. The authoritative was speaking nether customary information of anonymity and can't beryllium named successful public.

NATO besides reduced the fig of positions that Russia tin accredit radical for astatine the enactment from 20 down to 10, the authoritative said. No contiguous wide mentation was fixed for the decision, which volition instrumentality effect astatine the extremity of the month.

Relations betwixt NATO and Russia person been progressively strained since Moscow annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula successful 2014. The 2 are astatine likelihood implicit Russia's atomic rocket development, aerial intrusions into NATO airspace and the buzzing of allied ships by combatant planes.

Ad

Official talks betwixt them person been constricted successful caller years.

“NATO’s argumentation towards Russia remains consistent. We person strengthened our deterrence and defence successful effect to Russia’s assertive actions, portion astatine the aforesaid clip we stay unfastened for a meaningful dialogue,” the authoritative said.

The main forum for dialogue, the NATO-Russia Council, is stalled.

"NATO projected to clasp different gathering of the NATO-Russia Council implicit 18 months ago, and that connection stands. The shot is successful Russia’s court,” the authoritative said.

Leonid Slutsky, the president of the overseas affairs committee successful the little location of Russian parliament, dismissed the accusations against the Russian diplomats arsenic baseless and warned that NATO’s determination volition further strain relations.

Slutsky besides told the Interfax quality bureau that Moscow could respond with “asymmetric” retaliatory measures, but helium didn't elaborate connected what they mightiness be.

Ad

___

Vladimir Isachenkov successful Moscow contributed to this report.

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.