US expels 60 Russian diplomats, 14 EU nations also taking action

In the U.S. and across the European Union, a number of Russia diplomats are being expelled in a coordinated response to the nerve-agent poisoning of a former Russian spy in the U.K.

President Donald Trump has ordered the departure of 60 Russian diplomats. Russia is poised to respond in kind while 14 European nations are unrolling their own action.

Germany has expelled four Russian diplomats, and other nations area following in rapid succession.

Last week EU leaders declared in a statement that it was "highly likely” there was "no plausible alternative explanation” other than Russia being to blame. We are following developments here. The timestamps are in Brussels time.

Statement from White House (3:21 p.m.)
Here are some excerpt from the White House press secretary: "Trump ordered the expulsion of dozens of Russian intelligence officers from the United States and the closure of the Russian consulate in Seattle due to its proximity to one of our submarine bases and Boeing. ”
More: ‘The United States takes this action in conjunction with our NATO allies and partners around the world in response to Russia’s use of a military-grade chemical weapon on the soil of the United Kingdom, the latest in its ongoing pattern of destabilizing activities around the world.”

Tusk Announces 14 EU Nations are Expelling (3:14 p.m.)
As Tusk announced the number of countries taking part in coordinated action -- 14 in total.
Italy: 2
France: 4
Above are the latest numbers coming in.
This is German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, weighing in:
"It’s clear that this attack can’t remain without consequences.”
"We didn’t take the decision to expel Russian diplomats lightly. But the facts and the indications point to Russia. The Russian government so far hasn’t answered any open questions and has shown no readiness to want to play a constructive role in clarifying the attack.”

Ukraine Expects 13, Lithuania Targets 21 Names (3:08 p.m.)
At least 15 European nations, up from 10 are expected to act against Russia, according to the Czech Foreign Minister Martin Stropnicky. The Ukrainians in the meantime have announced via their president the expulsion of 13 Russian diplomats.
Russia stocks took a dip in reaction to the news.

Czech Republic, Denmark and Lithuania Follow Suit (3:06 p.m.)
Denmark: 2
Lithuania: 3
Czech Republic: 3
These are the number of Russia diplomats being expelled by those countries in a series of announcements.

Trump Acts, Germany Follows and Others Coming (3 p.m.)
President Donald Trump ordered 60 Russian diplomats the U.S. considers spies to leave the country in response to the nerve-agent poisoning of a former Russian spy in the U.K. and closed Russia’s consulate in Seattle, senior administration officials said Monday as European allies prepared similar measures.
Germany has expelled four Russian diplomats, the Foreign Ministry in Berlin said on Twitter, citing Russia’s lack of an explanation over the Salisbury attack. "We didn’t take this decision lightly,” Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said.

Germany Expels 4 Russian Diplomats: Suddeutsche (2:40 p.m.)
Germany plans to expel four Russian diplomats in response to an alleged chemical-agent attack in the U.K., Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported. The four are officials with intelligence backgrounds to be expelled out of solidarity with U.K. as well as for lack of cooperation from Russian authorities, Sueddeutsche says, without saying where it obtained the information.

Getting close to announcements, as Tusk Tweets (2:40 pm.)
Tune in: "At 15:00 (Brussels time) Statement by President Tusk on EU member states coordinated response to the Salisbury attack.” This came through by text message from the EU.
News conferences are being organized at the same time in different countries, such as the Czech Republic.

Russia Says EU Shows ‘Perverted’ U.K. Solidarity (1:50 p.m.)
The Kremlin is not impressed with the EU. The countries planning to expel Russian diplomats in support of the U.K. are "like loyal subjects giving political support to London,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Facebook.

Bild Says Germany Looking at Expulsions (1:10 p.m.)

Germany is considering expulsion of Russian diplomats, Bild newspaper reported, citing an unidentified German official: "There are plans to expel Russian diplomats from Germany. But this should be a joint decision among a number of EU member states.”

Russia to Face Penalties From At Least 10 Countries (1 p.m.)

As many as 10 European Union countries will take a coordinated action in response to Russia’s chemical attack in the U.K. earlier this month, according to two people with knowledge of the decision.
*A detailed announcement will be made at 3 p.m., according to the two people, who asked not to be identified discussing private decisions

Russia Warns of Tit-for-Tat Retaliation (12:47 p.m.)
Russia warned that it won’t take any expulsions lying down. The Kremlin hasn’t had any official information on reported U.S. plans to expel diplomats and will act reciprocally if such actions take place, Vladimir Putin’s spokesman told reporters on a conference call.

Germany Says Wait on Russia Response (12:40 p.m.)
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s chief spokesman, Steffen Seibert, to reporters in Berlin on Russia measures: "We’ll report to you when there’s something to report.”

Poland, Baltic Countries to Hold News Conferences (12:38 p.m.)
Poland’s security agency detained a man working at the country’s energy ministry suspected of spying for Russia. Russia’s ambassador has been summoned to the foreign ministry in Warsaw for talks and Poland’s Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz is due to hold a news conference at 3 p.m. in Warsaw.
Baltic countries will hold their own press conference at 4:10 p.m. local time to announce their reaction to the chemical weapons attack in the U.K., the Latvian foreign ministry said on Twitter.