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Many EU Nations Join US in Expelling Russian Diplomats

by Jamie Dettmer

   MOSCOW --

   Several European Union countries joined the U.S. Monday in expelling
   dozens of Russian diplomats in a coordinated retaliation for the March
   4 nerve-agent poisoning in Britain of a former Russian spy, which the
   British government blames on Russia and has accused the Kremlin of
   having approved.

   The coordinated expulsions -- unprecedented since the Cold War -- drew
   instant condemnation from the Kremlin, which warned it would respond in
   kind and order like-for-like expulsions. The first expulsions announced
   were in Washington, with the Trump administration ordering 60 Russian
   diplomats to leave, closely followed by Germany, which gave four their
   marching orders.

   The Netherlands expelled two Russian diplomats; Estonia ordered out the
   Russian defense attache; the Czech Republic announced it was expelling
   three Russian embassy staff.

   Lithuania said it is expelling three Russian diplomats and banning 44
   other Russian officials from entering the country. Latvia said it was
   ejecting one Russian diplomat. France said it is also expelling four
   Russian diplomats. Poland's foreign minister said four Russian
   diplomats in the country have been expelled.

   In Brussels, European Council president Donald Tusk said a total of 14
   members of the EU were participating in the collective reprisal. He
   said further action could be taken in the coming days.

   The day of high drama began when the foreign ministries of the three
   Baltic states -- Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia -- and Poland instructed
   their Russian ambassadors to attend meetings later Monday with host
   officials.

   Some EU officials suggested the coordinated retaliation might be
   postponed as an act of courtesy toward Russia because of a shopping
   mall blaze Sunday in Siberia that left 64 people dead, including at
   least 11 children.

   The first news of the summoning of Russian envoys came in Moscow, with
   officials telling local reporters they expected the meetings would
   kick-start a coordinated round of expulsions.

   On Facebook, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova
   launched a rhetorical preemptive strike, disdainfully describing
   Western states as behaving "like loyal subjects" eager to do the
   bidding of London.

   Privately, some Russian officials admitted they were surprised by the
   scale of the action, complaining the British hadn't yet proved the
   Kremlin was involved in the poisoning of Sergei Skripal, a Russian spy
   who had been recruited by Britain's MI6, and his daughter.

   After the British won unexpected strong diplomatic support last week at
   a meeting of EU leaders, who agreed with the British position that
   Russia was "highly likely" to have been behind the nerve-agent
   poisoning, the odds of collective reprisal increased.

   Britain expelled 23 Russian diplomats in the wake of the poisoning, and
   Russia responded by ejecting the same number of British diplomats.

   Eager to shield their relations with Russia, several other countries,
   including Austria, Greece and Italy, indicated their reluctance to
   participate in collective retaliation. Splits within the EU's own
   bureaucracy was on show last week when EU council president, Donald
   Tusk, withheld congratulations to Vladimir Putin on his re-election as
   Russian president, while European Commission president Jean-Claude
   Juncker sent Putin a note of congratulations.

   As the explosions unfolded, Britain's defense secretary, Gavin
   Williamson, said Western backing of Britain was "itself a defeat for
   President Putin."
   Speaking while visiting British soldiers stationed in Estonia, he said:
   "The world's patience is rather wearing thin with President Putin and
   his actions, and the fact that right across the NATO alliance, right
   across the European Union, nations have stood up in support of the
   United Kingdom. I actually think that is the very best response that we
   could have."

   The Russian government hit back, saying Britain's accusations over the
   nerve-agent attack on the former spy "border on banditry."

   Now, the question is how Russia responds.

   In January 2017, Putin ordered the expulsion of 755 U.S. diplomats
   after Congress passed legislation increasing sanctions against Russia
   for its annexation of the Crimea, and for interfering in the U.S.
   election.

   Russia's embassy in the U.S. capital Sunday tried to stave off U.S.
   action, urging the White House not to believe what is said was British
   propaganda about the Skripal poisoning.