Russia's decision to reduce the number of diplomatic and technical staff at the US embassy will hurt Russians themselves, US State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert
"Russians will suffer as a result of this, because many of the people who currently work there are Russian citizens. We’re sorry to see them make that decision, but they’re hurting their own people," she told the briefing.
On July 28, the Russian foreign ministry demanded that by September 1 Washington reduce the number of diplomatic and technical staff at the US embassy in Moscow and its consulates general in St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Vladivostok. Apart from that, Russia closed access to the US embassy’s compound in Serebryany Bor and storage facilities in Moscow from August 1.
