In response to Russia’s restriction of the number of German civil servants on its territory, Germany revoked the work permit of four of the five Russian consulates in Germany.

The spokesman of the German Foreign Ministry in Berlin announced that Germany is reacting to Russia’s reduction of the number of employees of German diplomatic missions and other organizations, such as the Goethe Institute, to 350 people, and in response is closing four Russian consulates, reports European Pravda with reference to Spiegel .

According to him, the Russian side was informed about the decision on May 31 and Moscow is asked to finally close the work of these consulates by December 31, 2023 .

Another Consulate General and Embassy of Russia will be able to continue their work .

The spokesman noted that this decision creates “structural and personnel parity.”

At the same time, Germany is closing its three consulates in Russia in November – in Kaliningrad, Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk.

A spokesman for the German Foreign Ministry called Russia’s decision an escalation.

“This unjustified decision forces the federal government to resort to very significant cuts in all areas of our presence in Russia,” he said.

Moscow made its decision, probably in response to attempts by the German government to get rid of employees of Russian special services disguised as diplomats. When a double-digit number of employees left Germany in April, the Russian Foreign Ministry declared “hostile actions by Berlin” and warned of consequences. Джерело: https://biz.censor.net/n3421866

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