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The Dutch and Belgian governments have expelled several Russian diplomats accused of espionage.
Dutch security services have estimated that 17 diplomats were involved in espionage, Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra told Dutch media.
They used their diplomatic status to gather information, he said, adding that the Russian ambassador had been summoned to the ministry and informed of the move.
The decision to expel 17 Russian diplomats was made for the security of the Netherlands, Hoekstra said, referring to the changing international situation in light of the war in Ukraine.
Hoekstra declined to give further details about the allegations, saying only that Russian diplomats should leave the country within two weeks.
Belgium has expelled 21 Russian diplomats for espionage and suspected security threats, the country’s Foreign Ministry Sophie Wilmes told Reuters on Tuesday after a Belgian news agency did not report on sources.
These diplomats worked at the Russian Embassy in Brussels and the Consulate in Antwerp.
All were accredited as diplomats, but were involved in “espionage and influence operations,” Minister Wilmes wrote on Twitter.
Ireland on Tuesday announced the expulsion of four Russian diplomats, explaining that their activities “do not meet international standards of diplomatic conduct”, while the Czech Republic expelled a member of the diplomatic staff of the Russian embassy in Prague, the Czech Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.
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