MOSCOW (AP) – Russia has ordered a Ukrainian diplomat to leave the country after allegedly receiving classified information from a database of the country’s largest security agency, and Ukraine has responded by suspending a Russian diplomat.
Alexander Sosonyuk, the Ukrainian consul in St. Petersburg, was detained on Friday while meeting a Russian in which, according to the agency, he obtained material from a database of the Federal Security Service.
On Saturday, Russian Foreign Ministry Minister Vasily Pokotilo announced that Sosonyuk should leave the country by Thursday. No details on the content of the classified material were disclosed.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry later said it had ordered a senior diplomat to leave, but did not identify the person.
The expulsions come amid growing tensions over Russia’s military build – up along the border with the eastern Ukraine region, which is controlled by rebels supporting Russia.
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This story has been corrected to show that the expulsion of the Ukrainian consul was announced by the Foreign Ministry, not by the Foreign Minister.