Russia expels Brit diplomat for 'spying and sabotage'

Russia has expelled a British diplomat after accusing him of espionage it was revealed today, amid icy relations between East and West over Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine.

The FSB security service claimed the diplomat 'intentionally provided false information when receiving permission to enter our country, thereby violating Russian legislation'.

The TASS news agency cited Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying that the ministry had summoned the British ambassador Nigel Casey over the accusations.

According to the FSB, the British diplomat was a replacement for one of six UK diplomats expelled in August, also on espionage charges, and carried out espionage and sabotage activities while on Russian soil.

 'A decision was taken to withdraw his accreditation and he was ordered to leave Russia within two weeks,' said the FSB.

'Signs of intelligence and subversive work threatening the security of the Russian Federation have been revealed,' a statement added, while providing no details of the accusation.

There was no immediate comment from Britain's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. The British embassy in Moscow did not respond to a request for comment.

Relations between Britain and Russia have plunged to post-Cold War lows since the start of the Ukraine war. 

Britain has joined successive waves of sanctions against Russia and provided arms to Ukraine.

Russia has refused to renew the accreditation of many UK diplomats in Moscow amid icy relations over Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine, and British assistance to Kyiv. 

Russia said Ukraine fired British Storm Shadow cruise missiles at its territory last week for the first time. 

President Vladimir Putin cited that, and the launching of U.S. ATACMS ballistic missiles by Ukraine, as the reason Russia responded by launching a new hypersonic missile at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Nov. 21.