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The Russian Foreign Ministry accused three US diplomats of stealing personal belongings from a Russian citizen, demanding to remove their diplomatic immunity in order to hold them responsible.
According to the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, administrative staff of the US Embassy stole a backpack from a Russian citizen in a cafe in Moscow. The amount of damage is 15 000 rubles (about 200 USD). The victim later wrote a statement to the police.The incident took place on September 17th an was recorded by cameras
They stealers were members of administrative and technical staff of the US Embassy in Moscow. They were military personnel of the US Marine Corps aged 21 to 26 years.
The Interior Ministry clarified that their diplomatic immunity prevents the suspects from being brought to justice.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said it had sent a note to the US Embassy asking to strip these employees of their diplomatic immunity in order to bring them to responsibility.
“In case of refusal to withdraw immunity, these persons must immediately leave the territory of Russia,” the Foreign Ministry added.
Despite the new round of diplomatic tensions between the United States and Russia, such an incident is unlikely to affect relations between the two countries and will be resolved within the framework of official diplomatic procedures.
