ROME, April 2. /TASS/. Russian Ambassador to Rome Sergei Razov is hopeful that the recent espionage scandal will not affect relations between the two countries, as he himself said in an interview with Italy’s Rai News24 TV channel on Friday.

"The incident causes deep regret, as does Italy’s decision to declare two employees of the Russian military attache’s office personae non grata. They have departed for their home country. As I pointed out at a meeting with senior officials at the Italian Foreign Ministry, we expect that the incident won’t have a negative impact on the generally constructive relations between our countries. We need to look at the bigger picture. Our multifaceted relations aren’t restricted to some unpleasant episodes," the envoy noted.

On Tuesday night, the special forces unit of the Italian Carabinieri detained an Italian Defense Ministry official and an employee of the Russian military attache’s office during an alleged handover of classified documents in return for cash. On Wednesday, the Italian Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian ambassador and announced its decision to expel two employees of the Russian embassy in Rome. The Italian officer has been charged with espionage and can face up to 20 years in prison if found guilty.