Today (Tuesday) the Russian Foreign Ministry accused the ambassadors of the United States, Britain and Canada to Moscow of interfering in its internal affairs, and summoned them over the Kara-Murza case, according to Russia Today Channel.
The ministry said in a statement that it had summoned the ambassadors of the three countries against the backdrop of blatant interference in Russia's internal affairs and activities that are not compatible with the diplomatic situation, stressing that the three ambassadors who denounced yesterday (Monday) the prison sentence issued against the Russian dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza were summoned, indicating The three ambassadors interfered in the internal affairs of Russia and carried out activities incompatible with their diplomatic status.
Yesterday, the Moscow court sentenced dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza to 25 years in prison, after convicting him of several charges, including high treason and spreading false information about the Russian army.
And the spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, threatened to expel Western diplomats involved in sowing discord and direct interference in Russia's internal affairs from her country, saying: “Any actions of the United States, Britain, Canada and other unfriendly countries that aim to stir up discord and enmity in our society will be suppressed. In the most decisive way, the diplomats involved in this act will be expelled from Russia.”
She pointed out that the statements of the ambassadors of the United States, Canada and Britain, after announcing the verdict on Kara-Murza, who is considered by the Russian authorities as a foreign agent convicted of high treason, is considered interference in Russia's internal affairs and is unacceptable.
Zakharova described the statements of the US and Canadian ambassadors announcing their support for Kara-Murza as "the height of irony," noting that their countries "brazenly" violate human rights and opponents are persecuted.
For his part, the Russian ambassador in London, Andrei Kelin, stated that the British Foreign Office demanded consular access to Kara-Murza, because he holds British citizenship, indicating that this does not concern the court, because there is no agreement between Russia and Britain on dual citizenship.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said that the Canadian ambassador to Russia, Alison Locklear, was summoned to the ministry to take action today, due to unacceptable public comments about the verdict issued against Vladimir Kara-Murza, explaining that such actions, accompanied by an anti-Russian campaign by Ottawa, as well as the announcement of a regime change in Russia, as a strategic target for Canada, constitutes direct interference in Russian affairs.
"In this context, the inevitable negative consequences of the current course of confrontation of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's regime on bilateral relations and the exploitation of the Canadian embassy staff in Moscow of their diplomatic status were noted," the ministry stressed.
The Russian Foreign Ministry indicated that it had informed US Ambassador Lynn Tracy that such measures, which are committed publicly in order to put pressure on the authorities and the court, constitute explicit interference in the internal affairs of the Russian Federation.
Okaz (Jeddah) @okaz_online