Russia has withdrawn its ambassador to the UK as the relationship between the two countries continues to deteriorate.
Long-serving Kremlin representative Andrey Kelin left his posting in London on July 21 after seven years.
However, Putin has not put forward any candidates to succeed him and embassy staff are understood to be in the dark about when a replacement might be appointed, The Times reports.
A spokesperson for the embassy accused the UK of choosing a ‘path of confrontation’ with Russia and said Kelin had made ‘considerable efforts to preserve contacts and channels of communication’ with Britain.
The statement added: ‘He left Britain in the hope that a more constructive and respectful dialogue could eventually be restored, should the UK reconsider its policies towards our country.
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‘In the meantime, the embassy is headed by the chargé d’affaires.’
It is not clear whether the Kremlin intends to leave the top post vacant on a permanent basis, but the delay has sparked suggestions that Russia is trying to downgrade diplomatic relationships.
Kelin’s exit was announced on June 11, during an embassy party marking Russia Day.
That same day, the British ambassador, Nigel Casey, alongside French and German representatives, met with Russia’s deputy foreign minister to protest the war in Ukraine.
Tensions then boiled over last week after it was reported that British-made drones were used for the first time by Ukraine in strikes against Putin.
Russia’s embassy warned the UK could ‘face consequences’ for the support and said Britain would pay a ‘higher price’ if it became more involved in the conflict.
Andy Burnham then hit back and and said he would continue to ‘support Ukraine 100 per cent’ despite the threats.
A national security source told the Sunday Times that the refusal to appoint a new ambassador could be a deliberate signal from Moscow to express their anger at the UK’s ties to Ukraine.
‘They are basically saying “you guys don’t matter” and that, frankly, London and the UK don’t count for anything any more,’ the source said.
As ambassador to the UK, Kelin was a controversial figure who repeated pro-Kremlin propaganda.
In March, he denied a report by the Foreign Office and other European allies that poison from a dart frog had been used to kill the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.
Kelin repeatedly rejected accusations that Putin was behind a nerve agent attack which almost killed former spy Sergei Skripal.
Instead, he said the the novichok poisonings had been staged by the British government and secret services.
Other experts have stressed that a gap between ambassadors is not unprecedented.
John Foreman, the former British military attaché in Moscow, added: ‘But the embassy’s strident statement this week and the huge deterioration of bilateral relations since 2019 and since the start of the war in Ukraine make me wonder if they will permanently downgrade the relationship this time.’
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