US Expels 12 Russian Diplomats and UN Staff... "13th Informant"

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] The U.S. government has initiated procedures to expel a United Nations staff member on charges of abusing 'residence privileges' to engage in espionage activities.

CNN reported on the 1st (local time) that this individual is the '13th intelligence agent' following the earlier expulsion decision involving 12 diplomats from the Russian Mission to the UN.

Stephan Dujarric, the UN spokesperson, also confirmed this fact during a briefing on the same day. He stated, "The U.S. Mission to the UN notified the Secretariat on February 28th of its decision to take action against a UN Secretariat staff member under Article 13(b) of the Headquarters Agreement," adding, "We regret this situation." However, he added that he would not comment further out of consideration for privacy.

The provision mentioned by Spokesperson Dujarric contains measures to sanction diplomats or UN staff who abuse residence privileges beyond official duties.

Earlier, the U.S. Mission to the UN notified the expulsion of 12 diplomats from the Russian Mission to the UN at the end of last month. The reason was that they abused the privilege of residing in the U.S. by engaging in espionage activities against national security. At that time, Richard Mills, Deputy Ambassador of the U.S. Mission to the UN, confirmed, "They engaged in conduct inconsistent with their responsibilities and obligations as diplomats."

However, Vasily Nebenzya, Ambassador of the Russian Mission to the UN, protested, calling it a "hostile act." Recently, the U.S. and Russia have been in conflict by expelling each other's senior diplomats.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.