Russia’s FSB orders British diplomat’s expulsion, UK rejects ‘intimidation’

Russia’s intelligence agency accuses the second secretary at the British Embassy in Moscow of espionage.Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has ordered a British diplomat to leave the country within two weeks over allegations of economic espionage, which the United Kingdom rejected as “unacceptable” amid tensions over Russia’s war on Ukraine.The FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, on Monday said its counterintelligence officers had expelled Albertus Gerhardus Janse van Rensburg, the second secretary at the British Embassy in Moscow.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Is Europe heading to an energy crisis?list 2 of 3Russia declares protagonist of Oscar-winning documentary a ‘foreign agent’list 3 of 3Russian strikes on Ukraine kill 4 as deal to end war dimsend of list“The FSB ⁠uncovered signs that the diplomat was carrying out intelligence and subversive activities that threaten the security of the Russian Federation,” the agency said.It added that the diplomat had attempted to “obtain sensitive information during informal meetings with Russian experts in the field of economics”.“In order to avoid negative ⁠consequences, including criminal liability, the FSB of Russia recommends that compatriots refrain from holding meetings ⁠with British diplomats,” it said.The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had delivered a protest to Britain’s charge d’affaires over the alleged spy.The British ⁠Foreign Office responded by saying that Russia’s accusations against ⁠its diplomats were “completely unacceptable” and that it would ⁠not tolerate “intimidation” of ⁠its ⁠embassy staff or their families.Russia-UK discordRussia has claimed British intelligence launched espionage activities at a level unseen since the depths of the Cold War to sow discord within the country, and it has long complained that its own diplomats are routinely harassed in key Western capitals.