The United Kingdom says it will expel a senior Russian diplomat and close several diplomatic sites in the country over allegations of ‘malign activity’ against Moscow, British Home Secretary, James Cleverly, told parliament on Wednesday.

Speaking to the parliament on Wednesday, Mr Cleverly said the unnamed Russian diplomat is an “undeclared” military intelligence officer and would be expelled from British soil, in a clear retaliatory move over alleged pattern of malign activity being carried out by Russia. 

The Russian government has been accused of targeted attacks in Britain and Europe which include hacking and leaking of trade documents relating to the United States and malicious email campaigns targeted towards British lawmakers.

UK’s latest response comes two days after the Russian Foreign Ministry announced it has summoned the country’s ambassador to Moscow to protest British foreign secretary David Cameron’s statement suggesting Ukraine should use weapons supplied by Britain to strike Russian territory.

Meanwhile, the Russian government, through its Foreign Ministry, said it would issue a “tough and measured” response to the UK’s decision against the country. 

“We consider extremely irresponsible and categorically unacceptable the claims of the British about the alleged involvement of our country in certain malicious actions,” said Maria Zakharova, a spokeswoman for the ministry.