The European Union has expelled nearly 700 diplomats in response to Russia’s war of aggression. These diplomats are now making their dissatisfaction known with a letter addressed to the Russian president.
A total of 698 diplomats have been expelled from the EU, most of whom were previously employed by one of the Russian intelligence services. According to the Munich-based newspaper Münchner Merkur, a letter signed by eleven of the expelled diplomats was leaked to the independent Russian news portal The Insider. Many intelligence officers had performed “demanding and often risky service” and had to leave Europe following the beginning of the “special military operation” in Ukraine.
The diplomats complain that there is now a lack of job opportunities, both for themselves and for their wives. “For the families of the officers, the sudden departure from Europe became a personal tragedy,” the letter stated. “Many wives, almost all with higher education, have taken up independent employment, there are simply no corresponding jobs or salaries,” the letter criticized Moscow.
Image: Kremlin.ru, CC BY 4.0, Vladimir Putin (23-04-2021).jpg, via Wikimedia Commons (no changes made)
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