A Foreign Ministry spokesman said in a statement that the Kremlin’s actions were in violation of international treaties governing diplomatic relations.
The spokesman added that Russia was waging a “deliberate campaign” to undermine and threaten Britain’s security and discourage support for Ukraine.
The Foreign Office said the campaign was being carried out through “dissemination of disinformation, sabotage within Europe and direct harassment and restrictions of diplomatic missions within Russia”.
“This campaign will not succeed. Russia must stop this activity immediately,” the statement added.
Press corps stationed outside the Foreign Office building in London were told by police on Wednesday afternoon that Ambassador Andrei Kelin had left hours earlier.
Diplomatic accreditation is the recognition by the host country of a person’s diplomatic status, as defined by the United Nations.
Without this, a person cannot have official diplomatic status.
The BBC understands the diplomats involved left Russia weeks before they were formally expelled, but Moscow’s announcement comes as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer visits Washington to meet US President Joe Biden.
They were scheduled to discuss whether Ukraine should be allowed to launch Western long-range missiles at targets inside Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said ahead of the visit that Moscow would view it as a serious escalation of the war, tantamount to “direct involvement” by NATO countries.
The diplomats involved, named and photographed on Russian state TV, are the latest in a string of similar expulsions that have become increasingly common since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Earlier this year, British diplomat Captain Adrian Coghill was ordered to leave Russia, days after a Russian defence attaché was expelled from London on charges of spying as an “undeclared military intelligence officer.”
