Russia declares 2 Latvian diplomats 'persona non grata'

The Russian Foreign Ministry has announced its decision to declare 2 diplomats working at Latvia's Embassy in Moscow as "persona non grata".

In a written statement from the ministry, it was recalled that Latvia had previously declared 2 Russian diplomats "persona non grata".

Stating that this was a "baseless" move, the statement noted that Dace Rutka, the Chargé d'Affaires of the Latvian Embassy in Moscow, was summoned to the Ministry.

The statement included the following:

"Two diplomats working at the Latvian Embassy in Moscow are being expelled based on the principle of reciprocity and Article 9 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. The Latvian side was informed that if Riga continues its hostile actions against Russian diplomats, Moscow will inevitably take painful steps against Riga."