Moscow, March 30 : Russia will expel 60 US diplomats and shut its consulate in St. Petersburg in tit-for-tat retaliation for Washington's moves against Moscow over an ex-spy incident, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.
It said in a press release that 58 employees of the US embassy in Moscow and two employees of the US consulate general in Yekaterinburg were declared "persona non grata" for "activities incompatible with diplomatic status," Xinhua reported.
The 60 diplomats must leave Russia by April 5, it said.
The consent to the opening and functioning of the US consulate general in St. Petersburg was withdrawn, it said.
