James Cleverly: Britain will expel a Russian diplomat on charges of espionage

A Russian military intelligence officer will be expelled from the UK “unannounced”, James Cleverley has said.

The Interior Minister also announced the closure of several Russian diplomatic buildings and the imposition of new restrictions on diplomatic visas.

The military attaché, named Colonel Maxim Ilovik, appears to have been in the UK since at least 2014.

The Russian embassy in London said the restrictions were imposed under a “ridiculous and baseless pretext.”

Speaking in the House of Commons on Wednesday, Cleverley told MPs: “Today, in conjunction with the Foreign Secretary, I am announcing a package of measures to make clear to Russia that we will not tolerate such clear escalations.”

“I can tell the council that we will expel the Russian military attaché, who is an undeclared military intelligence officer.”

The House of Commons was told that new restrictions will be imposed on Russian diplomatic visas, including a cap on the length of time Russian diplomats can spend in the UK.

The Home Office said the tougher measures are the latest move in response to “a pattern of alleged malicious Russian activity across the UK and Europe” in an attempt to “target and dismantle Russian intelligence gathering operations”.

This comes after five people were charged with conspiracy to commit espionage activities in the UK on behalf of Russia under the National Security Act, the first such prosecutions under the new laws.

Prior to his appointment in London, Colonel Ilovik served as Assistant Military Attaché at the Russian Embassy in Washington, DC.

Cleverly said that in the coming days, Moscow will level accusations of “Russophobia” while spreading “conspiracy theories and hysteria.”

He added: “This is nothing new and the British people and government will not fall for it, nor will it be taken seriously by Putin’s bots, trolls and minions.”

He said the status of diplomatic buildings from “several Russian-owned properties in the UK”, including Secaucus Heath House, a Russian-owned property in Sussex, and the trade and defense department at Highgate, would be removed.

“Believe [they] He said it was used for intelligence purposes.

Russian news agency TASS reported that the Russian embassy in London promised an “appropriate response” to the accusations.

“We always make sure that we protect our ability to have lines of communication with Russia,” Cleverly said. “Even during these most difficult times, the ways to de-escalate, avoid mistakes, avoid miscalculations are really important.”

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said Labor supported the move “wholeheartedly”, telling MPs: “We reiterate the Home Secretary’s strong condemnation of Russian interference and hostile activity here in the UK and across Europe.”

He added: “We have repeatedly witnessed Russia’s brazen disregard for the rule of law, the UK, our allies and our own internal security.”

Former Conservative minister Rahman Chishti asked whether the UK would introduce legislation to seize Russian assets, adding: “It is extremely important that we do everything we can to cut off Putin’s finances and make sure he pays for the reconstruction of Ukraine.”

Cleverley responded, saying: “We have made that absolutely clear, and we will be incredibly creative, and we will work hard to make sure that the regime and the people who funded the brutal attack on Ukraine are also those who are funding the rebuilding of Ukraine, and we are working with our international partners to make that happen.”