Deputy Minister of foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergei Ryabkov
© Stanislav Krasilnikov/TASS
MOSCOW, September 11. /TASS/. Deputy foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov expressed their protest to the Deputy Secretary of state Thomas Shannon in connection with the closing of the American authorities of the Russian Consulate in San Francisco and the seizure of Russian departmenti in Washington and San Francisco. This was announced on Monday, the Russian foreign Ministry on consultations of Deputy foreign Ministers of Russia and the United States in Helsinki.
“In the center of attention was the situation of forced closure by U.S. authorities of the General Consulate of Russia in San Francisco and the illegitimate seizure of our diplomatic property in this city and in Washington that previously occurred with two suburban residential complexes of the Russian institutions in the United States, – have informed in the Russian foreign Ministry. These steps, including those conducted by US intelligence under the threat of force searches of premises who have immunity, have become flagrant violation of the Vienna conventions on diplomatic and consular relations, bilateral Consular Convention. At the same time was severely limited freedom of movement of our diplomats.”