Germany, France and Poland have expelled four diplomats each, respective foreign ministries confirmed on Monday. The Netherlands and Denmark will expel two diplomats each, their foreign ministries said.The Russian Embassy's call for restraint and common sense has fallen on deaf ears:
Italy is expelling two Russian diplomats, while Lithuania has expelled three, according to that country's foreign minister. The Czech Republic will expel the same number.
Meanwhile, Latvia is expelling one diplomat and an Aeroflot employee, and Estonia's foreign minister has confirmed the country is expelling a military attaché at the Russian embassy. Finland is expelling one diplomat.
Ukraine has also jumped on board and announced it is expelling as many as 13 diplomats.
"They have already put all the blame on us while the investigation is still ongoing and the results are yet to be published... Moreover, they go the extra mile and suggest to punish Russia," the embassy said. "Time after time we keep proving that every lunge against us will be parried tit-for-tat. Every suggestion to 'punish Russia' is a suggestion to at least self-inflict a wound."Oh well, just another indelible stain on the U.S. and UK's already tainted reputation. As the Russians point out, they're really hurting no one but themselves in the long run.
Speaking to Sputnik following the announcements by various EU and other European countries, Austrian government spokesman Peter Launsky-Tieffenthal said that Vienna "will not take any measures at the national level, we will not expel diplomats.
"The reason for this is that we intend to keep open channels of dialogue with Russia. Austria is a neutral country and a kind of bridge between East and West. But we support the decision to recall the EU ambassador from Moscow."
Other countries were already exercising caution before the Monday announcements. Ahead of a meeting with Theresa May at a European Council summit dinner in Brussels last week, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras stressed the need for an investigation into the Skripal case before jumping to conclusions. "We have to express our solidarity to the UK, to the British people, but at the same time we need to investigate," Tsipras said.
Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, a former criminal lawyer, said he wanted to hear what May had to say at the summit before making a decision.
Meanwhile, the head of Germany's Die Linke party, Andreas Maurer, told Sputnik that the German position on the case of Sergei Skripal should not have been solely guided by Berlin's solidarity with the European Union. Berlin chose to expel four Russian diplomats.
"I am looking now, that the Foreign Minister of Germany [Heiko Maas] is talking about the decision as a sign of solidarity - this decision on the part of Germany to send out four diplomats. This is of course, in my opinion, you have to very critically look at this. In this regard, the decision should not be taken because of some sort of solidarity. Whatever problems or errors there may have been, the position of Germany should not have been built upon solidarity," Maurer said.
Maurer went on to note that Russia would respond with the expulsion of diplomats from all of those countries, adding that such moves will not lead to a normalization of ties. "We all know that Russia is obliged to reply to the expulsion of its diplomats. I am certain that German diplomats, which are now in Russia, will also be expelled from the country. We know that this always happens. This will not lead to solving the problem," he said.
This new round of "bullying" of Russia by the US and its European allies is quite abrupt and acute. London ignored usual diplomatic procedures to issue an ultimatum to Moscow and began sanctions. It feels like racing against time.
Donald Trump Signs Bloated $1.3 Trillion Omnibus Bill, Cites Military Funding By Charlie Spiering, Friday 23 March 2018, 14,005 comments
The MEK is the type of fringe group that sets up camp across the street from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and hands out fliers filled with unsubstantiated claims. This is America - we let crazy people talk. That's their right, and I would never suggest that they be prohibited from doing that. But giving the MEK a voice in the White House is a terrible idea. In John Bolton they have someone who will do it for them.Now that Bolton is in such an influential position in the Trump administration, his connection with and support for the MEK pose some real dangers for the U.S. He could use his position to funnel misinformation from the MEK to the president to distort U.S. policy in their favor. He might use his position to advocate publicly on behalf of the MEK, and that would give them a de facto endorsement from the administration. Worse still, he could persuade the president that this totalitarian cult is the "real" Iranian opposition, which would simultaneously harm Iranian dissidents and saddle the U.S. with a discredited, deranged cult as its preferred alternative to the Iranian government.
Confronting the potential loss of one or both chambers of Congress in the midterms, and struggling to raise money against an energized Democratic base, the party is desperate for Adelson's millions....That Politico article mentioned Israel only once, to say Adelson couldn't attend the shindig because he was in Israel. It never mentioned Iran, either.
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