Denmark Requests Russia to Reduce Number of Embassy Staff in Copenhagen

The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced today, Friday, that it has decided to allow only 5 diplomats at the Russian embassy in Copenhagen, bringing the number in line with the maximum imposed by Moscow on the staff of the Danish embassy. The ministry noted that Russia must reduce its number of diplomats to five and its administrative staff to 20 by September 29, following Denmark's failure to secure visas for its embassy employees in Moscow despite lengthy discussions. A spokesman for the ministry stated in a message to Reuters: "The Russian embassy in Copenhagen must now reduce its staff to ten diplomats." Denmark responded to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in April 2022 by expelling 15 Russian diplomats, which Moscow countered by declaring seven employees of the Danish embassy in Moscow as "undesirable."