Russia closes Polish consulate in St. Petersburg in retaliatory move

Russia has notified Warsaw of its decision to withdraw its consent to the operation of the Polish Consulate General in St Petersburg, the Russian Foreign Ministry has said.

"On December 5, the Russian Foreign Ministry handed over a note to the Polish side notifying that as a retaliatory measure to Warsaw's closure of the Russian Consulate General in Poznan, Moscow withdraws its consent to the functioning of the Polish Consulate General in St. Petersburg from 10 January 2025," the ministry noted, Caliber.Az reports via Russian news sources. 

In addition, "guided by the principle of reciprocity, three diplomatic staff members of the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in St. Petersburg have been declared persona non grata and must leave the territory of Russia before the specified date," the ministry noted.

To recall, the Russian consulate in the Polish city of Poznan was closed on October 30. Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski explained the decision by saying that Russia was allegedly waging a hybrid war against his country.

In November, Sikorski noted the possibility of closing all Russian consulates in the country, while he again accused Russia of "acts of sabotage and provocations in Europe".

By Khagan Isayev