Russian diplomats infiltrate UK Parliament's restricted zone
Diplomats from the Russian Federation briefly entered the restricted area of the British Parliament in December 2024 during a public tour, reports "The Guardian." Sources from the newspaper suspect that they wanted to "crow to the Kremlin."
According to "The Guardian," the incident occurred during a public tour of the British Parliament building, in which a small group of diplomats from the Russian embassy participated.
At one point, the Russians interrupted the tour and entered the restricted-access premises of the House of Lords. Security found them there and expelled them.
"We suspect they were just wanting to crow to the Kremlin that they had infiltrated the British parliament. It’s not ideal but they were caught before any damage was done," a source in the British Parliament told "The Guardian."
Parliamentarians received a warning
Following the incident, parliamentarians and their staff received a written warning from the presidents of both houses advising not to invite Russian diplomats to parliament.
"As the formally accredited representative of the Russian government, the Russian ambassador should not be welcomed on to the parliamentary estate until further notice. This applies to all other Russian diplomats and officials at the Russian embassy accredited to the UK," it was written.
