Russia expelled the “number two” from the US Embassy in Moscow, Bart Gorman , a measure that Washington regrets as “unprovoked” , the State Department reported Thursday, in full tension over the threat of a Russian military invasion of Ukraine .

“We can confirm that the US expelled the deputy head of the mission in Russia, Bart Gorman. He was the second-ranking official at the US Embassy, ” said a State Department spokesperson, who requested anonymity.

Faced with this “unprovoked” measure and that the United States government sees as a step in the “escalation” of bilateral tensions, this official added, Washington is evaluating a “response” in the midst of the crisis due to the Russian military concentration on the border with Ukraine.

He also stressed that “right now, more than ever, it is essential” that the two countries have “the necessary diplomatic personnel to facilitate communication.”

Precisely this Thursday, February 17, the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, will participate in a meeting of the UN Security Council in which he plans to denounce that Russia continues with its plans for an “imminent invasion” of Ukraine with the military concentration on the border with that country.

The Security Council meeting was called by Russia, which this month holds the presidency of the body , in order to discuss the Minsk Agreements for the settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

Russia defends that the resolution of the current tensions largely depends on fully implementing this 2014 diplomatic settlement on the crisis in eastern Ukraine.

Today, the Ukrainian government and pro-Russian separatist militias backed by Moscow accused each other of violating the ceasefire regime in eastern Ukraine, where they have been fighting for almost eight years in a conflict that has claimed more than 14,000 lives.

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