US Orders Russia to Close Consulate in San Francisco

The United States has given Russia until Saturday to close its consulate in San Francisco and two of its service branches in Washington and New York in response to a drastic reduction in staff at American diplomatic missions in Russia, Telegram reports, as carried by the Patria agency.

In a statement released on Thursday, the US State Department stated that it wishes to break the vicious cycle that continuously spoils relations between the United States and Russia and hopes that this decision will not provoke further retaliation.

In response to new sanctions imposed by the US Congress, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered at the end of July a reduction in the number of staff working at the embassy and in American consulates in Russia: 755 diplomats and employees, Russian or American, must leave their positions by Friday.

American diplomatic presence can be a maximum of 455 people, which is the level of Russian presence in the United States.

The United States had to vacate two diplomatic buildings near Moscow at the beginning of August. Washington announced that it would announce its response by September 1.

- In the spirit of equality invoked by the Russians, we will ask the Russian government to close its consulate in San Francisco, its branch in Washington, and another consulate branch in New York. This must be done by September 2 - the State Department announced on Thursday.

- With these measures, the two countries will each have three consulates, but we have decided to allow the Russian government to retain some branches in an effort to end the vicious cycle in our relations - he added.

He once again called for an improvement in relations, which are at their lowest level since the end of the Cold War, Washington states.