Moscow, Feb 12: Russia decided to “optimize” the staff of Russian foreign missions in Ukraine in the event of possible provocations from Kiev or third countries, but the main missions to the country continue their work, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Saturday.
“In this situation, fearing possible provocations by the Kiev regime or third countries, we did decide to partially optimize the staffing of Russian foreign missions in Ukraine. We draw your attention to the fact that our embassies and consulates will continue to perform their main functions,” Zakharova said in a statement published by the ministry.
Zakharova also slammed January reports by Western media about the “evacuation” of Russian diplomats from Ukraine as fakes meant as a pretext for the West to pull out its own diplomats from Ukraine.
