Russia Sanctions Embassy Bank Accounts in Response to Finland’s Unfriendly Acts — Kremlin

Dmitry Peskov reiterated that the principle of reciprocity and the principle of an appropriate response to unfriendly steps would continue to prevail in relations

 Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov Mikhail Metzel/TASS

© Mikhail Metzel/TASS

MOSCOW, May 18. /TASS/. Russia will not let the unfriendly actions of other countries go unanswered, adhering to the principles of reciprocity and responding appropriately, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday.

Speaking about the restrictions placed on the use of the bank accounts of the Finnish embassy and consulate general in Russia, the Kremlin spokesman pointed out that, "this is not an initiative of the Russian side." "We are only responding to the situation created by the authorities of a number of Western countries, including, to our regret, Finland," Peskov said. "We always say that we cannot and will not let any unfriendly action go unanswered," the Kremlin spokesman pointed out.

According to him, Moscow's response to Finland's note will include a reiteration of Russia's position: "The principle of reciprocity and the principle of an appropriate response to unfriendly steps will continue to prevail in our relations."

On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova confirmed that restrictions had been placed on the use of the bank accounts of the Finnish embassy and consulate general in Russia. She pointed out that these actions were a mirror response to similar restrictions placed on the Russian diplomatic mission in Finland, which has been limited to using an account at a Finnish bank only. Zakharova noted that Russia has repeatedly raised the issue of lifting restrictions on Russian diplomatic missions with the Finnish side. However, according to her, Finland has chosen a non-constructive approach, which contradicts the obligations of the host country to ensure the normal functioning of foreign diplomatic missions in accordance with the provisions of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.