Russia is closing its embassy office in Lappeenranta and a few offices of the Finnish consulate in Russia. “This Russian decision is due to Finland’s opposite course against Russia,” it says.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has today invited the Finnish ambassador to Moscow Antti Helanterän for an interview, says the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in his statement.
Russia has announced that it will close the Lappeenranta office of the Russian Embassy in Finland as of July 1. The operations of the Petroskoi and Murmansk offices under the Consulate General of Finland in St. Petersburg will cease on the same day.
Russian authorities say they have presented Finland with a note.
– This Russian decision is due to Finland’s opposite course against Russia, says the Russian Foreign Ministry.
Finland already announced in January that the operation of the Murmansk office shall be abolished temporarily. In April, Finland announced that operations would temporarily cease Even in Petrozavodsk.
“Responsible for the situation on the Finnish side”
The Russian Foreign Ministry also says that Russian diplomats face difficulties in Finland.
Foreign Minister of the Ministry of Transport Pekka Haavisto (green) reported earlier in May that Russia froze the accounts of Finland’s embassies in Russia in April. Finland sent a note to Russia about the matter, i.e. a written question or communication to another state, but until a few days ago Russia had not responded to the note.
Official representative of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova said that freezing the accounts would be a countermeasure to the fact that the Russian missions in Finland can only use their accounts in one Finnish bank. The Russian Foreign Ministry’s comments on the difficulties faced by diplomats may point to this.
– The responsibility for the situation lies entirely with Finland, says the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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The story was updated at 8:26 p.m.: The operations of the Finnish consulate in St. Petersburg will not stop. The Murmansk and Petroskoi offices operating under it will be closed down. Added at 8:34 p.m. that earlier this year, Finland had temporarily closed the operations of the branches.
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