GERMAN FLAGS REMOVED AS RUSSIA FORCES ST. PETERSBURG CONSULATE TO CLOSE
Germany’s national flags have been removed from its Consulate General in St. Petersburg as the diplomatic mission closes under an order from Moscow.
Russia withdrew permission for the consulate to operate and ordered its personnel to leave by September 18. The German Embassy in Moscow will assume its remaining responsibilities. Moscow also forced Germany’s Goethe-Institut cultural centers in Russia to close.
The move was retaliation for Berlin’s closure of Russia’s consulate in Bonn and the Russian House cultural center in Berlin. Germany took those measures after accusing Moscow of involvement in an attempted explosives-laden drone attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport—an allegation Russia denies.
The lowering of the flags is therefore more than the closure of another diplomatic building. It is a visible sign of how far relations between Germany and Russia have deteriorated as Berlin confronts what it describes as Russian aggression and hybrid warfare across Europe.