A service member of the Ukrainian Armed Forces points a weapon at fighting positions on the dividing line near the rebel-held city of Donetsk on April 16, 2021. REUTERS / Serhiy Takhmazov / File Photo
Russia’s FSB security service briefly detained a Ukrainian diplomat in St. Petersburg, the Ukrainian foreign ministry said on Saturday in the latest outbreak of tensions between neighboring countries.
The Interfax news agency previously reported the FSB saying that Oleksandr Sosoniuk was taken into custody when he tried to obtain classified information from Russian law enforcement databases during a meeting with a Russian citizen.
“This activity is incompatible with the status of diplomatic employee and is hostile to the Russian Federation. The foreign diplomat will be treated in accordance with international law,” the FSB said.
Ukraine’s foreign minister said Sosoniuk had been held for several hours, but has now returned to the country’s consulate in St. Petersburg.
Tensions between Moscow and Kiev have risen amid an accumulation of Russian troops along the border and clashes in eastern Ukraine between the army and pro-Moscow separatists.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy lobbied for peace talks on Friday. Read more
“The Ukrainian side will soon decide how to respond to this challenge, given the current practice,” the Ukrainian foreign ministry said of Sosoniuk’s detention.
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