STORY: :: Moscow, Russia / March 30, 2026
Russia has delivered a formal protest to Britain's Chargé d'affaires, seen here on Monday, as it expelled a British diplomat for spying.
The Federal Security Service said its counterintelligence officers had outed Albertus Gerhardus Janse van Rensburg for trying to get "sensitive information during informal meetings with Russian experts in the field of economics."
Moscow's FSB also warned Russians of grave problems if they have contact with British diplomats.
Since the Ukraine war, Moscow has cast Britain as its biggest enemy, saying its espionage activities are at a level unseen since the Cold War.
Britain supports Ukraine with money and weapons, and sees Russia as its biggest immediate threat.
It accuses Russian intelligence of major cyberattacks, killings and sabotage campaigns.
Britain said on Monday that Russia's accusations against its diplomats were "completely unacceptable," and the foreign ministry said the UK would not tolerate "intimidation" of its embassy staff or their families.
