‘Occupation’ of Russian diplomatic properties in US ‘blunt act of hostility’ – Foreign Ministry
RT.com
3 Sep, 2017
The “occupation” of Russian diplomatic properties in the US is a “blunt act of hostility,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said, adding that Washington is violating international law and the Vienna Convention by the move. The searches create a bad precedent to international diplomacy, the Greek official told RT.
Searches of the Russian premises began on Saturday, after the US State Department ordered the foreign ministry on August 31 to vacate the premises by September 2.
The FBI arrived in at least two vehicles to search the San Francisco Consulate. The minute the deadline expired, agents entered the Russian-owned diplomatic property, which in 2016 alone issued more than 16,000 tourist visas to American citizens.
Russian diplomats have posted photo and video evidence of the searches, which they call a “travesty of justice.”
“We regard the incident as a blunt act of hostility, a gross violation of international law by Washington, including the Vienna Conventions on diplomatic and consular relations,” the ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
The ministry called upon the US “to come to their senses and immediately return Russian diplomatic compounds.”
“Otherwise, the US will be responsible for the continuing degradation of relations between our countries, which largely affect global stability and international security,” the statement continued.
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