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Russia’s Krakow consulate to close in at least 30 days — senior Polish diplomat

Three diplomats will be declared personae non gratae

© Omar Marques/ Getty Images

MOSCOW, May 12. /TASS/. Three diplomats of the Russian Consulate General in Krakow will have to leave Poland, and the mission will be given no less than 30 days to close down, Polish Foreign Ministry’s Undersecretary of State Henryka Moscicka-Dendys said.

"As in the case of [the consulate in Poznan], the Russian side will be given a deadline, typically a period of at least 30 days, for the closure of a diplomatic institution," the diplomat said at a briefing broadcast by the TVP Info TV channel. The spokeswoman did not give a specific date.

In addition, the senior diplomat responded to a journalist's question about the consulate employees who will be declared personae non gratae. "This decision only affects diplomats. It does not apply to support and administrative staff," Moscicka-Dendys explained. She noted that three diplomats and four administrative and technical staff are accredited to the Russian Consulate General in Krakow.

On May 12, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski announced the decision to close the Russian Consulate General in Krakow, citing the alleged "proven involvement of Russian security services in the arson of the shopping center on Marywilska Street [in Warsaw]," where a fire occurred in May 2024. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Moscow would soon respond accordingly to Warsaw's inadequate steps.

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