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'Discouraging': Russian Embassy Slams Reports of Widespread Spying in UK

LONDON (Sputnik) - UK reports claiming half of Russians living in the country are spies serve to sow mistrust in the Russian embassy, the diplomatic mission’s spokesman told Sputnik.
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"These publications are based on a report by the Henry Jackson Society nonprofit which is openly anti-Russian … Such materials are part of a campaign to pressure our London embassy and discourage both Brits and Russians from contacting us," the spokesman said.

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He added the report would not have been worth commenting on if it had not perpetuated suspicion toward Russian expats and added to a "toxic aura" created around them by continued anti-Russia rhetoric, including in the UK government.

The study by the London-based think-tank reportedly claimed that half of the UK capital’s Russian population of 150,000 were informants, while half of Russia's diplomatic corps in London was engaged in intelligence work.

READ MORE: British Academic Detained on Spying Charges in UAE Released on Bail — Reports

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