Russia Shuts German Consulate in St Petersburg Over Drone Row‎

Russia, on Monday, announced the closure of the German consulate in St. Petersburg amid a drone row.
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‎Russia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, in a statement, ordered the German consulate to stop operations and leave the country by September 18.
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‎The ministry, which reaffirmed its earlier decision to shut German Goethe-Institut cultural centres in Moscow and St. Petersburg, insisted that their employees must leave no later than Sunday.
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‎The development came after Germany closed both the Russian consulate in Bonn and the Russian House cultural centre in the German capital, Berlin, last Wednesday.
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‎Germany blamed Russia for an attempted drone attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport on August 4, after a drone filled with explosives was found near a Ukrainian plane.
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‎Russia, however, denied involvement in the drone attack.
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‎“It was the German authorities who once again provoked a new round of escalation in bilateral relations. All responsibility for the consequences lies entirely with the German government,” Russian Foreign Ministry stated.
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