Moscow has decided to freeze the bank accounts of Finland’s embassy and consulate in response to “unfriendly actions” by western nations, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday.
“This was not the initiative of the Russian side. We are reacting to the situation created by the authorities of a number of countries in the collective West, including, unfortunately, Finland. We always say that we cannot and will not leave unfriendly actions unanswered,” he said.
The bank accounts of the Finnish Embassy in Moscow and General consulate in St. Petersburg were frozen by the Russian government at the end of April, Finland’s Foreign Ministry in Helsinki told CNN on Wednesday.
In a statement, the ministry added that it had “demanded Russia secure Finland´s diplomatic missions’ local money and payment transactions.”
Russia hits back: Finland is among the host of European countries to have imposed sanctions on Russia, since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine. The Baltic nation, which shares over 1,000 kilometers or 621 miles of land border with Russia, has also sought to shore up its own defenses against its neighbor by joining NATO in April.
Russia’s retort shows that it can use similar economic weapons as those used by the West. But it is unclear whether it plans to take similar actions against other nations – or if it has singled out Finland.