The spokeswoman for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zajárova, denounced that Gorman’s departure from the country was presented in some media as almost a deliberate escalation by Moscow.

“This American diplomat was ordered to leave Russia strictly in response to the unreasonable expulsion of a counselor from our embassy in Washington, despite his status as a senior official,” she said.

According to Zajárova’s comment posted on the Foreign Ministry’s official website, the State Department defiantly ignored this country’s request to extend his stay at least until the arrival of a replacement.

He explained that due to Washington’s decision, the Russian official will have to leave the United States without being replaced, which aggravated the lack of personnel, an already critical situation in the Russian diplomatic mission due to the “visa war” unleashed by the US authorities. .

ef/car/mml