Today, the Federal Foreign Office has declared a staff member of the Russian Embassy in Berlin persona non grata in accordance with Article 9 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 18 April 1961. With this step, the Federal Government is responding to a decision by the Russian Federation of Friday, 5 February 2021. Russia had expelled several EU diplomats, including a staff member of the Germany Embassy in Moscow. That decision was in no way justified. The German diplomat in question had merely exercised his function pursuant to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of observing developments in Russia by lawful means.