Russia ordered on Monday, September 7, the closure of the German consulate in Saint Petersburg, which must cease operations by September 18. The measure comes as a response to the identical decision taken by Germany to close the last Russian consulate in Germany, in Bonn, and the Russian cultural center in Berlin, known as the "Russian House."
Germany made this decision after officially accusing Moscow of attempting an attack with an explosives-laden drone at Leipzig airport in early August. The airport is considered a strategic military platform for the German army, NATO, and Ukraine, a country Russia invaded in February 2022.
Moscow had previously announced the closure of German cultural centers on Russian territory, including the Goethe Institute, which must leave the country by September 13. Russian diplomacy denounced the "anti-Russian acts and statements by German authorities" and stated that it was Berlin who "provoked a new cycle of escalation in bilateral relations."
Germany has stood out in European efforts to support Ukraine, both in funding the economy and in supplying weapons, which Moscow considers to be a war of the "collective West" against Russia. The Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergei Lavrov, accused Germany of wanting "once again" war against Russia.
