The Russian Foreign Ministry has advised non-essential personnel of the Russian diplomatic mission in Ukraine to leave the country, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.

According to Lavrov, Russia does not rule out the partial evacuation of diplomats from Ukraine.

His remarks came after talks with his UK counterpart Liz Truss, as he said that Russia will also probably advise the “non-essential personnel at our diplomatic institutions to go home for a while,” in a retaliatory move to the UK and the US.

The partial evacuation of Western embassy staff and their family members from Ukraine began in January, amid accusations that Russia was preparing an invasion. On 24 January, the US Department of State allowed some of the embassy staff to leave Ukraine. Additionally, US citizens were advised to refrain from traveling to Ukraine. Canada also decided to recall the embassy's employees, while Australia and Germany are evacuating diplomats' families. Despite the partial evacuation, the embassies are operating normally.