Russia expels 9 Finnish diplomats in retaliatory move

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - In a tit-for-tat move, Russia on Thursday declared nine Finnish diplomats persona non grata, and revoked consent on the work of the Consulate General of Finland in St. Petersburg from Oct. 1, which means it will have to close.

Finnish ambassador to Russia Antti Helantera was summoned to the ministry, and conveyed a strong protest, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry criticized "the confrontational anti-Russian policy pursued by the Finnish authorities," saying it is aimed at scrapping the mutually beneficial cooperation that had been formed for decades.

At Helsinki's initiative multifaceted trade, economic and interregional ties, direct contacts between citizens are being severed, Russians suffer discrimination on the basis of national origin when applying for entry visas, and Finnish authorities create obstacles in activities of Russian representative offices, including by declaring employees "persona non grata," the ministry added.

Finland's accession to NATO poses a threat to Russia's security, it said.

The diplomatic service also criticized Finland's policy on Ukraine, saying Helsinki encourages Kyiv "to go to war," "pumping" it with Western weapons, which are "clearly hostile actions" against Russia.

"This line of the Finnish authorities cannot remain unanswered," the statement said.

Finland, which shares a long border with Russia, joined NATO in April as the military alliance’s 31st member.

In June, Finland expelled nine Russian diplomats.​​​​​​​