Russia has withdrawn its ambassador to the UK, Andrey Kelin, who left his post last month after seven years, according to the Russian embassy in London. The move comes as the Kremlin continues to pressure Britain over its support for Ukraine, with the embassy issuing a warning of “consequences” last week after reports that British-made drones were used by Ukraine's military.
Kelin's name no longer appears on the “diplomatic list” section of the Russian embassy's website. The online list of “senior diplomatic staff” in the UK now includes only Vasily A Tsyganov, who serves as chargé d'affaires at the embassy.
Kremlin concludes Kelin's mission
A spokesperson for the embassy confirmed that the Kremlin had concluded Kelin's diplomatic mission on 21 July. “As for the state of Russia-UK relations across all areas, they have deteriorated to an unprecedentedly low level entirely on London's initiative,” the spokesperson added.
The spokesperson told the Sunday Times that Kelin had made efforts to preserve channels of communication with the UK and accused the government of choosing a “path of confrontation” with Russia. “He left Britain in the hope that a more constructive and respectful dialogue could eventually be restored, should the UK reconsider its policies towards our country,” they said, adding that the Kremlin had not yet put forward a replacement candidate.
Bilateral relations at historic low
John Foreman, a former British defence attaché in Moscow and Kyiv, noted that a gap between ambassadors was not unprecedented but expressed concern about the future of the relationship. In a post on X, he said: “The embassy's strident 'consequences' statement this week and the huge deterioration of bilateral relations since 2018 and especially since the start of the war make me wonder if Moscow will permanently downgrade the relationship this time, by default by not replacing him.”
The embassy later issued a statement saying there was nothing in the comments to imply that Russia intended to downgrade diplomatic relations with the UK.
UK responds to Russian pressure
A spokesperson for Britain's Foreign Office responded: “This is a matter for the Russian ministry of foreign affairs. We have an ambassador and embassy in Moscow to engage and raise concerns with the Russian government. We continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine, which has the right to defend itself against Russia's illegal and unprovoked invasion.”
Shaun Pinner, a former British soldier who fought alongside Ukrainian marines before being captured by Russian forces, offered a different perspective. He said there would be arguments that Kelin's exit had been a “dangerous erosion” of communication between Britain and Russia but added that this had not been the case for some time in reality. “If Moscow refuses to meaningfully engage, rebuffs attempts at communication and uses its diplomatic presence primarily to repeat Kremlin narratives, then we shouldn't pretend we're witnessing some functioning diplomatic relationship,” he said.
Kelin's tenure and recent tensions
Kelin, who joined the Soviet diplomatic service in 1979, has repeated Kremlin narratives in interviews to British media in recent years. In one on Sky News in June, he said that Russia “cannot lose” the war in Ukraine.
Russia stepped up its rhetoric towards the UK last week after Ministry of Defence sources indicated a report that two drones made by British companies had been used by Ukraine's military to attack targets inside Russia was true. The Russian embassy, seeking to maximise the impact of its remarks, added in a widely reported statement on Telegram: “London's actions will inevitably carry consequences for which it will have to answer.”
