The United States’ consul general in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg has left her post as Washington cuts services at its remaining consulates and shrinks operations at its Moscow embassy.
The U.S. in April suspended visa services as well as U.S. citizen services in Yekaterinburg and Vladivostok, leaving the U.S. Embassy in Moscow as the country’s only remaining diplomatic mission in Russia. The suspensions follow the 2018 closure of the country's St. Petersburg consulate in a diplomatic tit-for-tat.
“When I return home, I will tell Americans about the spirit of this region, full of creativity and energy, and how much Americans and Russians have in common," Amy Storrow said in a farewell post on Instagram.
The consul general also expressed hopes for the speedy resumption of the diplomatic mission in Yekaterinburg's work in full.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow is set to halt most visa services and U.S. citizen services in July after it said it was forced to cut 75% of its staff due to Russia banning it from hiring foreigners.
Russia’s ban on hiring foreign staff at U.S. diplomatic missions came amid a round of tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions as relations between Moscow and Washington plummeted this spring over the conflict in eastern Ukraine, the jailing of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, cyberattacks and more.
It is unclear if Storrow is one of the 10 U.S. diplomats expelled by Russia.
U.S. President Joe Biden, who roiled Moscow by describing Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “killer,” is nonetheless expected to meet his counterpart at a face-to-face summit this summer.
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