Work on lawsuits over seizure of Russian diplomatic property in US

The Russia side continues to prepare documents to go to court to sue the United States for blocking Russian diplomatic property, Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said on Sunday.

"This work continues and when we are completely ready to present these documents we will tell you," he told Russian journalists. "We are in no hurry and will try to prepare the package very thoroughly."

On September 2, 2017, the United States’ authorities closed Russia’s consulate general in San Francisco, the trade mission in Washington and its rented office in New York. The former two facilities are Russia’s government property and enjoy diplomatic immunity. Moscow described the seizure of Russian diplomatic property as an openly hostile act and called on the United States to immediately return these facilities.

On March 26, 2018, Washington closed Russia’s consulate general in Seattle (rented premises) and the consul general’s residence (Russia’s property).

Addressing a news conference after the BRICS summit in China’s Xiamen on September 5, 2017, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced plans to go to court over the seizure of Russia’s diplomatic property in the United States.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a news conference after his speech at the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly that Moscow was about to complete the work on lawsuits to US courts over the situation with the Russian diplomatic property.