Washington, March 26 (RHC) — The U.S. has joined the UK in retaliating against Russia by expelling 60 Russian diplomats on Monday and closing the Russian consulate in Seattle.  The action is supposedly in connection with an alleged poisoning of an ex-double agent in London.

Arguing that the diplomats were spies, the Donald Trump administration said it was "sending a message" to Moscow regarding what it described as an ‘‘unacceptably high’’ number of Russian intelligence operatives in the US.  The expelled Russian diplomats will have seven days to leave the United States.

Britain last week expelled 23 Russian diplomats over the alleged poisoning incident.  Russia responded by expelling the same number of British diplomats.