Poland deports 45 Russian diplomats on charges of espionage

Poland on Wednesday has made an announcement that it had expelled 45 Russian diplomats on charges of espionage, an allegation immediately dismissed as baseless by Russia’s ambassador to Poland.

Interior Minister of Poland, Mariusz Kaminski, has made an announcement via Twitter, “Poland had expelled 45 Russian spies pretending to be diplomats. We are dismantling the Russian special services network in our country.”

Meanwhile, Russia’s ambassador to Poland, Sergey Andreyev, confirmed the expulsions, addressing media that the individuals concerned had been given five days to leave Poland.

He added that Russia reserved the right to take retaliatory measures, “There are no grounds for these kinds of accusations.”

Bilateral diplomatic relations remained in place, he said, “The embassies remain, the ambassadors remain.”

Earlier Wednesday, Poland’s counter-espionage service ABW had made an announcement that it had detained a Polish national suspected of espionage for Russia’s secret services.

ABW spokesman Stanislaw Zaryn mentioned on Twitter, “The detainee worked in the archives of Warsaw’s registry office.”

He said, “The activity of the suspect posed a threat to both (the) internal and external security of Poland.”