Russian Embassy
P. John made this Freedom of Information request to Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
please could you tell me, for what remaining reason does the Russian government continue to enjoy the privilege of an Embassy on British soil, despite Ukrainian children being bombed by the Russian military, threats by the Russian leader to start a nuclear war in Europe, the murder of people on UK soil with polonium & novichok nerve agents, and the covert deployment of Phorm spyware in UK telecoms networks.
Why has the Embassy not been closed & repurposed to provide shelter & accommodation for Ukrainian refugees?
If we should provide accommodation for Russian officials in the UK, I am more convinced with every passing day that a prison cell would be a more appropriate solution.
Yours faithfully,
P John
Thank you for contacting the FCDO Information Rights Unit (IRU).
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Afghanistan related enquiries
The UK evacuation operation has now ceased. The security situation in
Afghanistan remains extremely volatile. There is an ongoing and high
threat of terrorist attack. The potential for terrorist attacks,
particularly around Kabul airport, remains very high. British nationals
remaining in Afghanistan need to consider carefully the risks should they
attempt to leave by any route. We advise against all travel to
Afghanistan. We continue to closely monitor events in Afghanistan. Please
check our travel advice for our latest advice for British nationals, and
subscribe for updates.
The British Embassy in Kabul has suspended in-country operations. All UK
diplomatic and consular staff have been temporarily withdrawn. The ability
to provide consular support to British nationals is extremely limited and
is being provided virtually. If you are a British national in Afghanistan
and need to speak to a consular officer call the FCDO on +441908 516666
(or 01908 516666 in the UK). The FCDO cannot offer advice on the safety of
travelling to any alternative departure point.
British nationals who remain in Afghanistan are strongly encouraged to
[2]register their presence in order to receive important updates. This
will enable us to validate the numbers of British nationals seeking
assistance, and to provide essential information to British nationals that
remain in Afghanistan, when it becomes available.
If you are an Afghan national and are eligible or have been approved for
assistance under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP),there
is more information here:
[3]https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio...
If you are a non-British national in Afghanistan, or are the family member
of a non-British national in Afghanistan, and in need of assistance,
please see
[4]https://www.gov.uk/guidance/support-for-...
or call +44 2475 389 980 (or 02475 389 980 in the UK).
Current and former locally employed UK government staff, ie those who were
employed directly by the UK government, not through a third party, should
apply to ARAP following this link:
[5]https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio....
Further information on the ARAP scheme can be found here:
[6]https://homeofficemedia.blog.gov.uk/2021...
If you have already applied for ARAP, and would like an update on your
application, please re-send your query here:
[7][email address]
Non-Afghanistan related Consular Assistance for British Nationals
If you are a British national seeking urgent consular assistance, please
call the Consular Assistance Team on 020 7008 5000 (or +44 20 7008
5000).
ATAS Certificates
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Dear Correspondent
Thank you for your email to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office (FCDO). Please see attached reply.
This email is intended for the addressee(s) only. All messages sent and
received by the FCDO may be monitored in line with relevant UK
legislation.
Please do not respond to this email address, as replies are routed to an
unmonitored mailbox. If you require additional information please contact
[email address]
Russia & Ukraine Crisis Team
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office's handling of my FOI request 'Russian Embassy'.
I asked you to disclose the following information to me,
1) for what remaining reason does the Russian government continue to enjoy the privilege of an Embassy on British soil?
2) Why has the Embassy not been closed & repurposed to provide shelter & accommodation for Ukrainian refugees?
Though verbose, your response was not directly relevant to the questions above. And I would like an answer that specifically addresses the above points. I see no reason to provide the Russian government with the facility of an embassy as this time, particularly when Ukrainian refugees as also seeking accommodation in the UK (for which humanitarian purpose the building seems ideally suited).
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/r...
Yours faithfully,
P. John
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
while awaiting your response to my FoIA request concerning the willingness of the UK Govt to host an embassy on behalf of the Russians, I note that Russian state TV's Dmitry Kiselyov has indicated the Russian Govt has a plan to "plunge the British Isles into the depths of the sea" and turn Britain into a "radioactive desert".
Which is not very nice.
Thus if you could hasten your response to my FoIA request, before the threatened Russian attack happens, I would be particularly grateful.
Yours faithfully,
P. John
Thank you for contacting the FCDO Information Rights Unit (IRU).
PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING ADVICE
Once we have officially accepted your request, we are unable to provide
progress updates within the initial 20 working day deadline for response.
Please do not send multiple emails about the same enquiry, as this is
likely to cause a delay in our response time.
Should you need assistance in making or refining your request you may wish
to consult the gov.uk guide on [1]How to make a Freedom of Information
(FOI) request
The Information rights Unit are not able to respond to queries on the
issues mentioned below. Emails about these issues will be deleted without
response. Please note the relevant guidance and redirect your query
accordingly.
Afghanistan related enquiries
The UK evacuation operation has now ceased. The security situation in
Afghanistan remains extremely volatile. There is an ongoing and high
threat of terrorist attack. The potential for terrorist attacks,
particularly around Kabul airport, remains very high. British nationals
remaining in Afghanistan need to consider carefully the risks should they
attempt to leave by any route. We advise against all travel to
Afghanistan. We continue to closely monitor events in Afghanistan. Please
check our travel advice for our latest advice for British nationals, and
subscribe for updates.
The British Embassy in Kabul has suspended in-country operations. All UK
diplomatic and consular staff have been temporarily withdrawn. The ability
to provide consular support to British nationals is extremely limited and
is being provided virtually. If you are a British national in Afghanistan
and need to speak to a consular officer call the FCDO on +441908 516666
(or 01908 516666 in the UK). The FCDO cannot offer advice on the safety of
travelling to any alternative departure point.
British nationals who remain in Afghanistan are strongly encouraged to
[2]register their presence in order to receive important updates. This
will enable us to validate the numbers of British nationals seeking
assistance, and to provide essential information to British nationals that
remain in Afghanistan, when it becomes available.
If you are an Afghan national and are eligible or have been approved for
assistance under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP),there
is more information here:
[3]https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio...
If you are a non-British national in Afghanistan, or are the family member
of a non-British national in Afghanistan, and in need of assistance,
please see
[4]https://www.gov.uk/guidance/support-for-...
or call +44 2475 389 980 (or 02475 389 980 in the UK).
Current and former locally employed UK government staff, ie those who were
employed directly by the UK government, not through a third party, should
apply to ARAP following this link:
[5]https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio....
Further information on the ARAP scheme can be found here:
[6]https://homeofficemedia.blog.gov.uk/2021...
If you have already applied for ARAP, and would like an update on your
application, please re-send your query here:
[7][email address]
Non-Afghanistan related Consular Assistance for British Nationals
If you are a British national seeking urgent consular assistance, please
call the Consular Assistance Team on 020 7008 5000 (or +44 20 7008
5000).
ATAS Certificates
Email [8][email address] if you have a query about your application. We
are unable to reply to any query on an application.
Legalisation
Contact the Legalisation Office if you need an update on an application or
if you have a general enquiry: [9][email address], Telephone:
03700 00 22 44
Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, [10]Find out about call charges
Visas
Please see guidance on [11]Applying for a visa to come to the UK or
contact [12]UK Visas and immigration for help.
Travel Advice
If you require travel advice for your destination country, please visit
the [13]Travel Advice pages, which contain the latest information on
coronavirus, safety and security, entry requirements and areas where the
FCDO advises against travel. You can also subscribe to travel advice
email alerts for your destination and monitor the FCDO coronavirus travel
advice page. You can follow FCDO Travel social media channels
on [14]Twitter, [15]Facebook and [16]Instagram. If you have a question
about the advice or a topic that is not covered, [17]please submit an
enquiry.
Follow us online: www.gov.uk/fcdo
This email is intended for the addressee(s) only: All messages sent and
received by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office may be
monitored in line with relevant [18]UK legislation
References
Visible links
1. https://www.gov.uk/make-a-freedom-of-inf...
2. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
3. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
4. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
5. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
6. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
7. mailto:[email address]
8. mailto:[email address]
9. mailto:[email address]
10. https://www.gov.uk/call-charges
11. https://www.gov.uk/apply-to-come-to-the-uk
12. https://www.gov.uk/contact-ukvi-inside-o...
13. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
14. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
15. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
16. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
17. https://emea01.safelinks.protection.outl...
18. https://www.gov.uk/government/publicatio...
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
Before I make a complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office concerning your handling of my FoIA complaint (Russian Embassy; https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/r... )...
You'll note that the European Parliament, of which we are sadly no longer a member, declared Russia to be " a state sponsor of terrorism". See; https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/p...
Please could you explain to me, by responding in full to my FoIA request and associated request for internal review, why a state sponsor of terrorism is allowed to occupy an Embassy Building on UK soil?
You are presently breaking the law.
Yours faithfully,
P. John
P. John left an annotation ()
European Parliament declares Russia to be a state sponsor of terrorism
On Wednesday, Parliament adopted a resolution on the latest developments in Russia’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine. MEPs highlight that the deliberate attacks and atrocities committed by Russian forces and their proxies against civilians in Ukraine, the destruction of civilian infrastructure and other serious violations of international and humanitarian law amount to acts of terror and constitute war crimes. In light of this, they recognise Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism and as a state that “uses means of terrorism”.
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/p...
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
another reminder concerning my request concerning the Russian Embassy (https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/r...).
Given that the Russian invasion of Ukraine clearly fulfils all the criteria defined by the Terrorism Act 2000 to be considered an act of terrorism (ie the use or threat of one or more of actions such as serious violence against a person/serious damage to property/endangering a person's life/creating a serious risk to the health or safety of the public/action designed to seriously interfere with or seriously to disrupt an electronic system, and where they are designed to influence the government, or an international governmental organisation or to intimidate the public), why are the Russian Government still enjoying the privilege of an Embassy on UK soil?
Please could you explain to me, by responding in full to my FoIA request and associated request for internal review, why a state sponsor of terrorism is allowed to occupy an Embassy Building on UK soil?
You are presently breaking the law.
Yours faithfully,
P. John
Dear P. John,
Thank you for your email to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) requesting information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
In order for us to be able to assist you with your request and best direct any search please could you clarify/refine the scope of your request.
Would it be possible for you to refine your request and specify a particular timeframe for the information you are interested in?
Once we receive your revised request we will consider it and the appropriate course of action.
Yours sincerely,
Information Rights Unit
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Dear Information Rights (Sensitive),
to remind you of the original request;
"please could you tell me, for what remaining reason does the Russian government continue to enjoy the privilege of an Embassy on British soil, despite Ukrainian children being bombed by the Russian military, threats by the Russian leader to start a nuclear war in Europe, the murder of people on UK soil with polonium & novichok nerve agents, and the covert deployment of Phorm spyware in UK telecoms networks.
Why has the Embassy not been closed & repurposed to provide shelter & accommodation for Ukrainian refugees?"
You'll observe the request concerns current affairs ('for what remaining reason') and therefore it is not necessary for me to specify a 'particular timeframe'.
Please will you stop stalling for time, and quite simply answer the request for information.
For what remaining reason does the Russian government continue to enjoy the privilege of an Embassy on British soil?
Yours sincerely,
P. John
Dear P John,
Thank you for your recent correspondence of 11th January to the Foreign,
Commonwealth and Development Office. Please see the attached reply.
Yours sincerely,
FCDO Correspondence
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
This email is intended for the addressee(s) only. All messages sent and
received by the FCDO may be monitored in line with relevant UK
legislation.
Please do not respond to this email address, as replies are routed to an
unmonitored mailbox. If you require additional information please contact
[1][email address]
References
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1. mailto:[email address]
Dear Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office,
thank you for your recent response to my FoIA request concerning the Russian Embassy.
I was pleasantly surprised by the candor & detail of your reply. Thank you.
Yours faithfully,
P. John
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P. John left an annotation ()
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-61311026
Ukraine: The spy war within the war
By Gordon Corera
Security correspondent, BBC News
"Why has the UK not expelled anyone? Officials"... who are remarkably slow to answer FoIA requests... " say all of them were kicked out after Salisbury and the only spies left are 'declared' officers who act as liaisons for formal contacts. They are likely to be watched by MI5 for any sign they are carrying out any covert acts on the side."