Estonia’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday it was expelling a Russian diplomat over “ongoing interference” in the NATO and EU member’s affairs.
“The diplomat in question has been directly and actively involved in undermining the constitutional order and legal system of Estonia,” Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said in a statement.
“The Russian embassy’s ongoing interference in the internal affairs of the Republic of Estonia must end and by expelling the diplomat, we are demonstrating that Estonia will not allow any actions orchestrated and organised by a foreign state on its territory,” he added.
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Tsahkna said the diplomat was “contributing to… crimes against the state, including several offences related to sanctions violations”.
An Estonian citizen “has been convicted for carrying out these crimes”, he added.
Russian foreign ministry deputy press and information director Alexey Fadeev responded to the incident.
“This is not the first such hostile action on the part of Estonia. I must say that we have already become accustomed to this,” Fadeev was quoted as saying by the TASS news agency.
“We will provide a timely comment on what measures we will take in relation to Estonian diplomats,” he added.
Tensions have escalated between the two countries since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
Estonia has been a staunch ally of Kyiv since the war began.
Last month, the Estonian foreign ministry summoned the Russian charge d’affaires, as it said that a Russian border guard vessel breached its maritime border.
Last year, Estonia expelled another Russian diplomat on similar charges.
“The Russian embassy has interfered in the internal matters of Estonia in an unacceptable way,” Tsahkna said at the time.
Russia has not had an ambassador in Tallinn since February 2023, when Estonia ordered Moscow’s envoy to leave in a tit-for-tat move.
