Russian authorities have stripped the accreditation of the second secretary of the British Embassy, Alkesh Odedra, as well as Michael Skinner, the spouse of the first secretary of the political department of the diplomatic mission, Tabasum Rashid, state agencies reported. They must leave Russia within two weeks.
The FSB stated that it is 'reliably known' that embassy staff were engaged in 'intelligence-subversive activities threatening Russia's security'. In addition, when obtaining permission to enter the country, they deliberately provided false information.
In connection with the revocation of accreditation of British diplomats, a representative of the embassy was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
In November last year, the FSB reported the revocation of accreditation of the second secretary of the political department of the British Embassy in Moscow, Wilkes Edward Pryor, also accusing him of providing false information when obtaining entry permission.
In September, the intelligence service reported that accreditation was revoked for six employees of the British Embassy, whose actions 'revealed signs of conducting intelligence-subversive work'. The FSB then stated that the diplomats 'attended gatherings of NGO-foreign agents lobbying for migrant interests' and that 'London sends spies to Russia under the guise of diplomats, using young children to cover espionage operations'.