In December, the administration of Barack Obama closed two Russian countryside vacation retreats in Maryland and New York, saying the compounds had been used for intelligence-related purposes. The closures were part of a broader response, including the expulsion of 35 suspected Russian spies, to what U. officials have called cyber interference by Moscow in the 2016 elections. The Kremlin has denied the allegations.
Trump came into office wanting to improve relations with Russia, a desire that was hamstrung by the election interference allegations. The new sanctions passed by Congress conflicted with Trump`s goals, but he grudgingly signed them into law this month.
The United States said last week that it would have to sharply scale back visa services in Russia, a move that will hit Russian business travelers, tourists and students.
The Russian consulate in San Francisco handles work from seven states in the Western United States. There are three other Russian consulates separate from the embassy in Washington. They are in New York, Seattle and Houston.
The consulate in San Francisco is the oldest and most established of Russia`s consulates in the United States, the senior Trump administration official told reporters. An official residence at the consulate will also be closed.
No Russian diplomats are being expelled, and the diplomats assigned to San Francisco can be re-assigned to other posts in the United States, the official said.
The Russians can continue to retain ownership of any of the closed facilities, or sell them, but will not be allowed to carry out diplomatic activities there, the official said.
"Even after these closures, Russia will still maintain more diplomatic and consular annexes in the United States than we have in Russia," the official said. "We`ve chosen to allow the Russian government to maintain some of its annexes in an effort to arrest the downward spiral in our relationship.
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