London and Moscow Relations Strained by Spy Allegations
Moscow expelled a British diplomat on Monday over allegations he was working as a spy. The diplomat, 29-year-old Albertus Gerhardus Janse Van Rensburg, was accused of engaging in “subversive intelligence activities that threaten Russia’s security,” according to the Russian FSB security service.
The Russian foreign ministry summoned Britain’s charge d’affaires and warned against retaliation. London dismissed the accusations as “complete nonsense” and claimed Russia was spreading malicious lies about their work.
Decades-Long Tensions Over Spying
Tensions between the two capitals have been high due to the Ukraine war, but spying allegations have long strained relations. In 2006, former FSB officer Alexander Litvinenko died in London after being poisoned with polonium, believed to be a Russian secret service hit.
In 2018, Sergei Skripal, a former Russian spy, was poisoned by Novichok nerve agent in Salisbury, UK. The attack led to the largest Western expulsion of Russian diplomats in decades.