Russia expels 23 British diplomats in tit-for-tat move over spy's poisoning

MOSCOW - Russia has expelled 23 British diplomats in a tit-for-tat response to the UK’s expulsion of 23 Russian embassy staff over the nerve-agent attack in England last week.

London has accused the Kremlin of orchestrating a nerve toxin attack on a former Russian double agent and his daughter in southern England.

Escalating a crisis in relations, Russia said on Saturday it was also shutting down the activities of the British Council, which fosters cultural links between the two countries, and Britain’s consulate-general in St. Petersburg.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said it was giving the 23 British diplomats one week to leave the country, the Russia Today reported.

The move, which was tougher than expected, followed Britain’s decision on Thursday to expel 23 Russian diplomats over the attack in the English city of Salisbury which left former Russian spy Sergei Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia Skripal, 33, critically ill in hospital.

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Russia has denied the UK's allegations, accusing Britain of using the incident in a campaign to smear Moscow.

Relations between London and Moscow have crashed to a post-Cold War low over the Salisbury attack, the first known offensive use of a nerve agent in Europe since World War Two.

The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the British ambassador, Laurie Bristow, to a meeting on Saturday morning in central Moscow at its Stalin-era headquarters during which he was informed of the retaliatory measures.