Russia has decided to expel two German diplomats in retaliation for dismissing two Russian embassy employees from Germany in connection with the murder of a Georgian two years ago in Berlin. According to the RIA Novosti agency, the German ambassador to Moscow, Géza Andreas von Geyr, was informed about the decision and was summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry on Monday.
“This step is not surprising, but from the point of view of the federal government it is completely unfounded,” a spokesman of the German foreign ministry said, according to the DPA agency.
The spokesman further confirmed that, according to the Russian side, this was a reciprocal measure and that Berlin’s decision last week was an appropriate response to the decision of the Berlin court in a case that amounted to a serious violation of the sovereignty of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Last week, a Berlin court sent Russian citizen Vadim Krasikov to life in prison on Wednesday after he was found guilty of the murder of Georgian Zelimchan Changoshvili in August 2019 in the center of the German capital. The court also concluded that the Russian authorities had decided to “liquidate” Changoshvili and called the crime “state terrorism.”
Subsequently, the new German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock announced that two employees of the Russian embassy in Berlin would be expelled due to the conviction in the case.
The next day, Russia’s foreign ministry vehemently denied that the Russian authorities had any involvement in the assassination. Russia indicated that the episode was fabricated in what amounted to a false flag attack with the help of foreign intelligence agencies.
