Austria expels two Russian diplomats for actions ‘incompatible with status’

VIENNA: Austria has declared two diplomats from the Russian embassy personae non gratae for actions “incompatible with their diplomatic status,” ordering them to leave the country within a week, Austria’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.

The move brings to 11 the number of Russian diplomats Austria has expelled since 2020 in four separate rounds. It is not clear whether the expulsions are connected. Officials have said that some previous expulsions involved spying, but as before the ministry gave no specifics.

“Two diplomats from the Russian embassy have acted in a manner that is incompatible with their diplomatic status,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement, using its standard phrasing for such cases. They must leave the country by the end of March 19, it added.