The British Consulate General in St. Petersburg will cease operations. Russian authorities have taken these measures in response to the British government's actions in connection with the poisoning of former Russian GRU officer Sergei Skripal and his daughter. Tensions in Russian-British relations have led to a number of decisions on both sides to mutually expel diplomats.
"Given the disparity in the number of consular offices between the two countries, Russia's consent to the opening and operation of the British Consulate General in St. Petersburg is being revoked. The relevant procedures will be carried out in accordance with international legal practice," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in an official statement. The British diplomatic mission will be given the necessary time to complete its work, RIA Novosti reports.
The British Consulate General in St. Petersburg opened in 1992. The diplomatic mission provided British visas to residents of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region, Pskov and the Pskov Region, Novgorod and the Novgorod Region, Vologda and the Vologda Region, Murmansk and the Murmansk Region, Arkhangelsk and the Arkhangelsk Region, Kaliningrad and the Kaliningrad Region, the Komi Republic, the Republic of Karelia, and the Nenets Autonomous Okrug.
Source: travel.ru