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The Estonian Foreign Ministry intends to expel a Russian diplomat. This will be the response to the announcement of the Consul in St. Petersburg, Martha Lyatte, as persona non grata.
As the head of the Public Relations department of the Estonian Foreign Ministry, Aari Lemmik, said, in the practice of international relations, “usually a symmetrical response is given to the expulsion of a diplomat.” According to the ERR portal, he explained that a Russian diplomat will leave the country. He is not yet ready to say who exactly it will be.
He also noted that the Estonian diplomat carried out his usual work in the host country in accordance with the legislation that regulates diplomatic activities.
Lyatte was detained in St. Petersburg while transferring secret data from a Russian citizen to him. The Foreign Ministry noted that there is “irrefutable evidence” of the consul’s illegal activities.
As a result, the diplomat was declared persona non grata, and the charge d’affaires of the Estonian Embassy in Russia, Ulla Uibo, was summoned to the Foreign Ministry. She was strongly protested in connection with the collection of secret data by the consul.