Two Irish diplomats in Moscow expelled by Russia

Two Irish diplomats have been asked to leave the Irish Embassy in Moscow, the Department of Foreign Affairs has said.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said there was "no justification" for the measure.

He said that staff at the Embassy of Ireland in Moscow were not engaged in any duties or functions which are "incompatible" with their diplomatic status.

"This decision to reduce the size of our relatively small embassy in Moscow will significantly reduce our ability to provide services to our citizens in Russia and to maintain diplomatic channels of communication with the Russian Federation," he added.

The Russian Embassy in Ireland said it had called in Irish ambassador Brian McElduff to listen to its protests over what it called "unfriendly and groundless steps" in expelling officials at the Russian embassy in Dublin.

Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said there was "no justification" for the measure

In March, four senior officials at the Russian Embassy were asked to leave the country.

The taoiseach (Irish prime minister) told the Dáil (Irish parliament) the move came after security advice received by the government.

The government said the officials' activities were "not in accordance with international standards of diplomatic behaviour".