(AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE) — President Vladimir Putin said 755 US diplomats must leave Russia and warned ties with Washington could be gridlocked for a long time, in a move Sunday that followed tough new American sanctions.
The Russian foreign ministry had earlier demanded Washington cut its diplomatic presence in Russia by September to 455 -- the same number Moscow has in the US.
"More than a thousand people were working and are still working" at the US embassy and consulates, Putin said in an interview with Rossia-24 television.