Russia Did Not Expel the US Ambassador
The Claim
Russia expelled the US ambassador.
News posted on
Emerging story
In response to Washington's decision to expel 12 Russian diplomats working at the United Nations headquarters in New York, Russian media and various social pages on Facebook published news that Russia had expelled the US ambassador.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar’s team investigated the claim and found it misleading. According to Reuters, Russia's Foreign Ministry denied reports that it had expelled the American ambassador on Wednesday. The ministry condemned the American move but did not mention the expulsion of the American ambassador to Russia in its official statement.
The Russian Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, stated that Russia is still waiting for a response: “It could also be the deportation of US diplomats, although we would not like to resort to this again. But Washington's arrogance, its unwillingness or inability to negotiate, simply leave us no other choice."
Anatoly Antonov, Russia's ambassador in Washington, responded by emphasizing that this is a hostile move against Moscow.
