Russian diplomats infiltrated restricted zone of UK Parliament – The Guardian
Photo: Russian diplomats penetrated the restricted area of the UK Parliament (parliament uk)
Several Russian diplomats managed to access a restricted area of the UK Parliament during a guided tour but were subsequently expelled by security, The Guardian reports.
This incident occurred just before Christmas last year. A small group of Russian diplomats joined a public tour of the Parliament buildings. However, they separated from the main group and entered the Lords Chamber, a restricted area.
Parliamentary security intercepted the diplomats and removed them, clarifying that tours are not permitted in the restricted parts of Parliament.
"We suspect they just wanted to report back to the Kremlin that they had infiltrated the UK Parliament. It's not ideal, but they were caught before any harm was done," a parliamentary source told The Guardian.
The UK government took the incident seriously. Lawmakers in both houses were warned via a letter not to invite Russian diplomats to Parliament, even privately.
Since 2022, Russian diplomats, including the ambassador and embassy officials in London, have been banned from visiting Parliament. This restriction followed Moscow's imposition of sanctions against numerous British MPs and diplomats after its invasion of Ukraine.
Russian spies
Russia has long been accused of using its embassies and diplomats for espionage and intelligence gathering. Since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, many EU countries have expelled Russian diplomats suspected of espionage activities.
For example, after the liberation of Bucha in the Kyiv region, where Russian forces committed atrocities, Germany expelled 40 Russian diplomats.
As Reuters earlier reported, there have also been proposals within the EU to restrict the movements of Russian diplomats.
