Germany expels dozens of Russian diplomats

KABUL (Pajhwok): In response to alleged war crimes in Ukraine, Germany has decided to expel dozens of Russian diplomats, says the Foreign Ministry in Berlin.

In a statement, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said his country had taken the step to show its stance against Russian brutality in Ukraine

She said on Monday: “The federal government has decided today to declare a significant number of the Russian Embassy staff as persona non grata …”

The foreign minister claimed the Russian embassy staffers had worked “every day against our freedom and against the cohesion of our society here in Germany”.

Meanwhile, the German news agency DPA reported the government had ordered the expulsion of 40 Russian diplomats.

For its part, the Putin administration has emphatically denied that his troops had killed civilians while withdrawing from towns near Kyiv.

The Russian ambassador to Germany has been notified about the decision.

PAN Monitor/mud