MOSCOW: Russia will respond tit-for-tat if its diplomats are banned from moving freely in the EU, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Mari...
MOSCOW: Russia will respond tit-for-tat if its diplomats are banned from moving freely in the EU, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told TASS.
Earlier, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said that the new 19th package of EU sanctions against Russia may include a ban on the free movement of Russian diplomats within the Schengen zone.
Zakharova quoted iconic Soviet-era poet and songwriter Vladimir Vysotsky in her response.
"So, to use Vysotsky's apt expression, their diplomats will be ‘saddled and hobbled’ in retaliation," Zakharova said.
The idea of restricting the movement of Russian diplomats in the EU has been raised repeatedly in the past, usually on the initiative of the authorities of Eastern European and Baltic countries. So far, this measure has not been included in the sanctions lists. Zakharova previously stated that Moscow would take retaliatory measures if the EU restricted the movement of Russian diplomats.
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