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Russia declares detained CIA officer persona non grata

After the incident, the Russian foreign ministry has summoned U.S. Ambassador in Russia Michael McFaul for a demarche

Photo ITAR-TASS

Photo ITAR-TASS

MOSCOW, May 14 (Itar-Tass) - Russia has declared a CIA career officer who was detained in Moscow overnight to May 14 persona non grata and demands that he should leave Russia immediately, the Russian foreign ministry said on Tuesday.

Earlier on Tuesday the Public Relations Centre of the Federal Security Service (FSB) reported, that overnight to May 14 the FSB counterintelligence service detained a career officer of the Central Intelligence Agency Ryan Christopher Fogle, who worked under the cover of the post of the third secretary of the political department of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, in the attempt to recruit an officer of one of Russian security services.

After the incident, the Russian foreign ministry has summoned U.S. Ambassador in Russia Michael McFaul for a demarche. The Russian side declares Ryan Fogle persona non grata and demands the he leave Russia immediately.”

The ambassador earlier refused to comment on the news report about the detention of a CIA career officer in Moscow. In reply to the question of a user in Twitter whether the diplomat can confirm or deny this news report, McFaul wrote a short ‘no’.

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