Spain to expel around 25 Russian diplomats: Foreign minister

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - Spain will expel around 25 Russian diplomats and embassy staff, the Spanish foreign minister announced on Tuesday.

“They represent a threat to Spain’s security interests,” Jose Manuel Albares said in a news conference, without going into more details about the threats.

Albares said the decision was also related to Russia’s “terrible actions” in Ukraine, particularly in the cities of Bucha and Mariupol, where mass civilian casualties have come to light.

“We are outraged by the civilian massacres,” he said, adding: “They (the perpetrators) cannot go unpunished.”

Albares said the Russian diplomats will be given just “a few days” to leave the country.

“The Russian ambassador will not be expelled because we want to keep the door open for dialogue,” Albares said, adding that Spain is expecting that Russia will respond “symmetrically.”

With the announcement, Spain joins Belgium, Poland, the Czech Republic, Ireland, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Denmark and Italy in moving to expel Russian embassy staff.

Russia has yet to comment on the development, but it has denied accusations related to the murder of civilians in the Ukrainian city of Bucha.