Moscow bans Norwegian consul due to Russophobic remarks

The Russian Foreign Ministry has issued a "strong protest" to Norwegian Ambassador to Russia Rune Resalann in response to Norwegian Consul Elisabeth Ellingsen's "unacceptable behaviour" in a Murmansk hotel.

The Norwegian ambassador was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry, according to the agency's website. Also, the Foreign Ministry said that now Ellingsen will not be able to stay on the territory of the Russian Federation, the ministry said on its website.

"On August 4, the ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway, Resaland, was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry, who was strongly protested in connection with the unacceptable behaviour of the consul of the Norwegian Consulate General Elisabeth Ellingsen at the Murmansk hotel on July 6, 2022, who allowed herself offensive Russophobic statements," the ministry's website says.

According to the Russian ministry, the Norwegian Foreign Ministry sent regrets about the situation. The Russian Ministry accepted them. However, despite this, "after the incident, Elisabeth Ellingsen's stay on the territory of the Russian Federation is impossible," the department reported.

On July 30, at the Azimut Hotel in Murmansk, Ellingsen, in response to the refusal of the hotel administration to put her in another room, said that such an attitude towards guests is unacceptable in the Scandinavian countries. At the end of the speech, the consul stated: "I hate Russians." On the same day, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Mariya Zakharova, accused Elisabeth Ellingsen of nationalism and xenophobia.