LONDON, Feb. 2 (Xinhua) -- Britain summoned the Russian ambassador and revoked the accreditation of a Russian diplomat, according to a statement by the British Foreign Office on Monday.
The Office condemned "in the strongest possible terms" Russia's decision to expel a British diplomat last month and its "baseless accusations against our staff," said the statement.
Any further action taken by Russia will be considered an escalation and responded to accordingly, it added.
On Jan. 15, the Russian foreign ministry said Russia had decided to expel a British embassy employee for alleged affiliation with the British special services.
The ministry said it summoned the British charge d'affaires in Russia on the same day and lodged a strong protest regarding the issue.
The ministry had decided to revoke the accreditation of the employee and ordered him to leave Russia within two weeks.
"Moscow will not tolerate the activities of undeclared British special services staff on Russian territory," it said, adding that if London escalates the situation, the Russian side will give a decisive "mirror" response. ■
