Moscow could attack the whole of the European Union in response to Bulgaria's expulsion of 70 members of the Russian diplomatic corps, the spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry warned on Monday (July 4th).
“Sofia's politicized decision to unjustifiably reduce our diplomatic staff in Bulgaria will certainly not go unanswered bilaterally,” Maria Zakharova said in a statement from Russian diplomacy.
Believing that the expulsion by Bulgaria went “far beyond diplomatic practice”, she urged Sofia and the EU to “reflect on the principle of reciprocity which underpins diplomatic relations”.
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European diplomacy “should understand that the thoughtless support for anti-Russian actions by individual member states imposes on the whole of the European Union the responsibility for their consequences, including from the point of view of retaliatory measures on our part”, she added.
Russia's ambassador to Sofia on Friday considered closing her embassy in the country after Bulgaria refused to reverse its decision to expel 70 Russian diplomatic staff.
This is an unprecedented number of expulsions pronounced by this Balkan country, a member of the European Union and NATO but traditionally close to Russia.
The EU for its part “regrets the unjustified threat of the Russian Federation to sever diplomatic ties with Bulgaria”, describing this measure as “disproportionate”.
Many European countries expelled Russian diplomats following the February 24 invasion of Ukraine, with Moscow responding with similar moves.
