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Expulsion of Russian diplomats related to Berlin murder, Slovakian PM says

Slovakia’s Foreign Ministry on August 10 confirmed that the authorities were expelling three staff members of the Russian Embassy in Bratislava

PRAGUE, August 11. /TASS/. Slovakia has made the decision to expel Russian diplomats in connection with the murder of a Georgian national in Berlin, Slovakia’s Prime Minister Igor Matovic stated.

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US hails Russian diplomats’ expulsion from Slovakia

"When a couple of days ago I was informed about the activities of some staff members of the Russian embassy [in Slovakia] and about confirmations of misuse of our (Slovakian - TASS) visas in order to commit murder in Germany, I immediately without hesitation understood that such actions cannot remain without response," he stated as quoted by the TASR news agency on Tuesday. It didn’t divulge any other details.

Meanwhile, on the social networks the Slovak prime minister wrote: "There are times when you have to set a red line even for friends. Yes, Russians are our Slavic brothers, and Russia is our trading partner. But this doesn’t change the fact that Slovakia is a sovereign state, and not a banana republic where diplomatic rules can be mocked."

Slovakia’s Foreign Ministry on August 10 confirmed that the authorities were expelling three staff members of the Russian Embassy in Bratislava over suspected espionage activity. The Russian Foreign Ministry said Moscow would declare a tit-for-tat measure. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday didn’t exclude that US diplomats were involved in the expulsion

Murder in Berlin

A 40-year-old Georgian national was killed in Tiergarten on August 23, 2019, on the same day Berlin prosecutor’s office reported that a suspect was arrested. According to their information, he was a 49-year-old Russian citizen. The Russian side repeatedly denied Russia’s involvement in the Berlin incident.

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