OREANDA-NEWS. NATO's decision to expel eight Russian diplomats from Brussels is not linked to specific events, it is linked in general to Russia's activities. This was stated by the secretary general of the alliance Jens Stoltenberg.

“We note the growth of Russia's activity and must be vigilant, act, because we feel that the employees of the Russian mission are carrying out activities that do not correspond to their status,” he said.

According to him, the alliance is ready for dialogue with the Russian Federation and the convocation of the Russia-NATO Council.

The alliance feels that the diplomats performed tasks that do not correspond to their status, the secretary general stressed.

NATO previously decided to reduce the total number of accreditations for Russia and expel eight diplomats deemed to be undeclared intelligence officers, thus cutting the mission in half.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov previously commented on NATO's actions in connection with the expulsion of eight employees of the Russian mission to the alliance. According to him, this fact does not allow Moscow to build illusions about the resumption of the dialogue. Peskov argues that there is an obvious contradiction in the statements of NATO representatives about the desire to normalize relations with the Russian Federation and in real actions.