Employees of the Russian embassy in Kiev began to leave Ukraine, RIA Novosti reports, citing a source.

“According to the statements of Ukrainian citizens, Russian diplomats and consular officers in Ukraine have begun to leave for Russia. This, in particular, is evidenced by the difficulties encountered when making an appointment at the consulates and the embassy,” he said.

The source added that against the backdrop of official announcements by Western countries about the evacuation of diplomatic missions, the idea arises that "Moscow has decided to go the same way."

He recalled that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov hinted at the possibility of such a scenario at a meeting with his British counterpart Liz Truss.

Earlier, Lavrov admitted that Russia could decide on the temporary evacuation of non-essential personnel of diplomatic institutions from the diplomatic mission. His deputy explained that Russia could evacuate embassy staff to protect them from "possible provocations by the Kiev regime or third countries."

At the end of January, some employees of the US diplomatic mission in Ukraine were evacuated as a “precautionary measure” due to the impending Russian “invasion” of Ukraine. The UK, Germany, Australia and Canada also reported plans to evacuate some of the embassy staff.

bbabo.Net