LEIPZIG /Germany/, December 21. /TASS/. The closing ceremony for the oldest Russian consular office in Germany, which has existed for 240 years, has taken place in Leipzig (the federal state of Saxony).

The event was attended by Russian Ambassador to Germany Sergey Nechayev, as well as employees of the Russian Embassy and Consulate in Leipzig, a TASS correspondent reports. A ceremonial lowering of the Russian flag occurred under the Russian national anthem. A sign was removed from the entrance to the consulate.

"The Leipzig consulate is the oldest Russian consulate in Germany," Russian Ambassador to Germany Sergey Nechayev told Russian journalists. He added that this year marked 240 years since this consular office opened. "Now we are forced to close it," Nechayev stated.

According to official data, 26,000 Russians are registered at the consulate general in Leipzig. On November 1, 2023, the provision of all consular services there was suspended, except for the issuance of ready passports. It was extended until November 17.

On May 31, Berlin notified Moscow about the need to cease the work of four out of five Russian consulates general in Germany by the end of the year. The Russian consulates general in Bonn, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich and Frankfurt am Main were operating in Germany. Now Russia's interests in Germany will be represented by the Russian Embassy in Berlin and the Consulate General in Bonn.

Earlier, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Germany had closed the consulates general in Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk and Kaliningrad on its own initiative as part of its efforts to break up Russian-German relations.