Russia has revoked the accreditation of six British diplomats it has accused of spying.
The country’s security service FSB claimed their activities threatened the country’s security and said in a statement it had received documents indicating Britain’s involvement in inflicting "a strategic defeat" on Russia.
The UK Foreign Office said the accusations against the diplomats were "completely baseless".
It comes as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer arrives in Washington for talks with US President Joe Biden about the war in Ukraine, including whether to give Kyiv permission to fire their missiles at targets inside Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has suggested Moscow will regard this as a serious escalation of the war which equates to "direct participation" of Nato countries.
“If that is the case, we will take corresponding decisions based on the threats that will be created to us,” he said on state TV.
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