Russia, UK to begin restoring diplomatic staff in January – envoy

Moscow and London have reached an agreement on gradually restoring their diplomatic missions’ staff as of January 2019, Russian Ambassador to the UK Aleksandr Yakovenko said on Friday. “I am not sure that will be done in relation to all staff, but at least half of the embassy will be restored,” he told Rossiya 24 TV channel. The envoy described the agreement as a positive step in bilateral relations. The ties deteriorated over the Skripal case. Britain expelled 23 Russian diplomats without providing any evidence. Moscow took tit-for-tat steps expelling the same number of British diplomats from Russia. It also ordered London to close the British Consulate-General in St. Petersburg and shut down the British Council’s offices in Russia.