Russia announced Friday that they would be expelling ten American diplomats in response to new sanctions the Biden administration imposed against the country, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported.
“The latest attack on our country undertaken by the Biden administration, of course, cannot remain unanswered,” Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement, according to the WSJ. “Washington, it seems, doesn’t want to put up with the fact that in the new geopolitical realities there is no place for unilateral dictatorship.” (RELATED: Biden Greenlights Sweeping Sanctions Against Russia In Retaliation For SolarWinds Hack And Other ‘Malign Behavior’)
Russia also retaliated against the U.S. for what Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov alleged as meddling in Russia’s politics, by placing eight American officials on a sanctions list. In addition, Lavrov said that Moscow would close down U.S. nongovernment organizations (NGOs) in the Russian Federation, the WSJ reported.
BREAKING: President Biden announces new sanctions on Russia, expulsion of 10 diplomats, in retaliation for hacking and election interference. https://t.co/Kzqvw31RcG
— The Associated Press (@AP) April 15, 2021
The Biden administration said it would sanction Russia on Thursday for multiple violations, including the alleged 2020 hacking of the U.S. technology firm SolarWinds—a claim Russia denies—and alleged meddling in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, the Associated Press (AP) reported. The Biden administration also expelled ten Russian diplomats and restricted Russia’s ability to borrow money.
Lavrov described the actions of the Biden administration as “absolutely unfriendly and unprovoked,” according to the AP. Lavrov threatened to take “painful measures” against American interests in Russia in the future, including a request for a reduction of the American embassy and consular staff, the AP reported.
