bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Agence France-Presse

Russia said it was suspending its mission to Nato and closing the alliance’s offices in Moscow, as relations with the Western military bloc plunged to new depths.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced the moves after Nato expelled several members of Moscow’s delegation to the alliance for alleged spying.
Lavrov also said staff at Nato’s military mission in Moscow would be stripped of their accreditation from November 1, and the alliance’s information office in the Russian capital would be shuttered. “Following certain measures taken by Nato, the basic conditions for common work no longer exist,” Lavrov told reporters in Moscow on Monday.

“Nato has already greatly reduced its contacts with our mission,” Lavrov said, adding that the alliance was “not interested in dialogue and work as equals”.
“We see no reason to pretend that any change is possible in the foreseeable future.”
Lavrov said that in case of urgent matters Nato could liaise via the Russian ambassador in Belgium.
Nato spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said the alliance regretted Russia’s decision. “Nato’s policy towards Russia remains consistent,” she added.
Nato bars eight Russian diplomats over spying accusations
“We have strengthened our deterrence and defence in response to Russia’s aggressive actions, while at the same time we remain open to dialogue, including through the Nato-Russia Council.”
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas described the announcement as “more than regrettable” and said it would prolong “icy relations” between Russia and Nato.
“We are ready for dialogue, but must realise that this is no longer the case with Moscow,” Maas told journalists in Luxembourg.
The moves cut off years of efforts to improve ties between Russia and Nato that followed the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union.

They come after Nato earlier this month stripped eight members of Russia’s mission to the alliance of their accreditation. Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg calling them “undeclared Russian intelligence officers”.
“We have seen an increase in Russian malign activities, at least in Europe and therefore we need to act,” Stoltenberg said at the time, describing the relationship between Nato and Russia as “at its lowest point since the end of the Cold War”.
Russia test fires hypersonic Tsirkon missile from nuclear submarine for first time
Russia had an observer mission to Nato as part of a two-decade-old Nato-Russia Council meant to promote cooperation in common security areas.
The Russian mission has been downsized before, when seven of its members were ejected after the 2018 Novichok poisoning in Britain of a Russian former double agent, Sergei Skripal, and his daughter.
Meetings of a Nato-Russia council have not been held since 2019 against the backdrop of the heightened tensions.


Russia’s relationship with the West has been on a downward spiral since Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine and support for pro-Russian separatists in the country’s east.
Western nations have imposed a series of sanctions in recent years over Ukraine, alleged election interference, cyberattacks and the poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.
Moscow in turn has accused the West of interfering in its elections and of supporting anti-Kremlin forces in countries such as Ukraine and Georgia, which Russia considers part of its traditional sphere of influence.
Lavrov’s announcements came after US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin landed in Georgian capital Tbilisi on the first leg of a visit to three allies on the Black Sea – Georgia, Ukraine and Romania – aiming to deliver a message of support against threats from Russia.
Nato defence ministers, including Austin, will be in Brussels on Thursday and Friday for a series of meetings.
Additional reporting by Reuters


China warns university students to beware of well-paid jobs offered by foreign spies

In Asia-Pacific, the real maritime contest is over satellite surveillance

Rights groups raise alarm after Iran executes 2 more opposition group members

iPhone spyware DarkSword hits Malaysia, exposing spread of sophisticated hacking tools

Espionage

Russia closes Nato missions as spy row worsens

A security guard patrols outside a building that houses the Nato information office in Moscow on Monday. Photo: AFP

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin attends a meeting with Georgian Defence Minister in Tbilisi on October 18, 2021. (Photo by Vano SHLAMOV / AFP)

HANDOUT - 18 October 2021, Russia, Moscow: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks during a meeting dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the House of the Russian Diaspora Abroad. In response to the revoked accreditation for Russian diplomats, Russia will suspend the work of its permanent representation to NATO in Brussels from the beginning of November, according to Lavrov. Photo: -/Russian Foreign Ministry/dpa - ATTENTION: editorial use only and only if the credit mentioned above is referenced in full

Russia says it chased off US warship amid naval drills with China

The US destroyer USS Chafee is seen form Russian navy’s Admiral Tributs destroyer near Russian territorial waters in the Sea of Japan on Friday. Photo: Russian Defence Ministry Press Service via AP

In this photo released by the U.S. Navy, the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Champlain (CG 57), and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Chafee (DDG 90) conduct a passing honors ceremony with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) Murasame-class destroyer JS Ikazuchi (DD 107) and the Kongo-class guided-missile destroyer JS Chokai (DDG 176) in the Pacific Ocean, Sept. 19, 2021. A spate of recent Chinese military flights off Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own, and naval maneuvers by the United States and its allies to reinforce maritime routes challenged by China are fueling increasing tensions in a region already on edge. (Haydn N. Smith/U.S. Navy via AP)

US defence chief Lloyd Austin heads to Black Sea region, with eye on Russia

Retired US Army General Lloyd Austin. Photo: Getty Images/TNS

President Joe Biden meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Georgia's Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili speaks to the media at a polling station during the municipal elections in Tbilisi, Georgia October 2, 2021. Press Office of Georgian Government/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. MANDATORY CREDIT.

Vladimir Putin breaks Nobel Peace Prize silence to threaten Russian laureate Dmitry Muratov

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a plenary session of the Russian Energy Week International Forum in Moscow on Wednesday. Photo: Sputnik via Reuters

FILE - Colleagues congratulate Novaya Gazeta editor Dmitry Muratov at the Novaya Gazeta newspaper, in Moscow, Russia, Friday, Oct. 8, 2021. As a new Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Russian newspaper editor Dmitry Muratov has downplayed the buzz around his name. The award isn't for him, he says, but for all of the staff at Novaya Gazeta, the independent Russian newspaper noted for investigations of official corruption, human rights abuses and Kremlin criticism. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

News

World

Russia & Central Asia


Russia’s move comes after Nato expelled eight ‘undeclared Russian intelligence officers’
Western alliance’s dealings with its traditional adversary Russia have grown increasingly strained



Russia said it would halt the activities of its diplomatic mission to Nato after the Western military alliance expelled eight Russians saying they were spies.


Russia

Nato

Diplomacy