The U.S. has demanded that Russia close the San Francisco consulate by September 2, 2017, as well as two other diplomatic facilities in Washington, D.C. and New York, the official State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert has said two days prior to the deadline given.

“In the spirit of parity invoked by the Russians, we are requiring the Russian government to close its Consulate General in San Francisco, a chancery annex in Washington, D.C., and a consular annex in New York City. These closures will need to be accomplished by September 2,” Ms. Nauert said in announcing the closures. A White House spokesperson indicated that the consular buildings in Washington and New York that the Russian side was obligated to close down were Russia’s trade missions.

In August, media stories surfaced to the effect that the U.S. would demand Russia to close one of its consulates to maintain diplomatic parity. While there are three U.S. consulates in Russia, the U.S. actually had four Russian consulates. The Russian Foreign Ministry’s representative Maria Zakharova noted that many years ago Russia suggested that the U.S. open the fourth consulate general in the country; however, the United States has not taken up the offer.

The State Department representative said that the U.S. would like to avoid any counter-measures from Moscow. “The United States hopes that, having moved toward the Russian Federation’s desire for parity, we can avoid further retaliatory actions by both sides and move forward to achieve the stated goal of both of our Presidents: improved relations between our two countries and increased cooperation on areas of mutual concern,” Ms. Nauert said.

Prior to the consular closings in the United States, the American side decreased the headcount of its personnel at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow by 455 individuals in response to Russia’s decision to expel U.S. diplomats from the country. Russia’s move followed the United States’ declaring 35 Russian diplomats to be personae non-grata in December 2016, as well as the enactment of permanent anti-Russian sanctions by the U.S. Congress in July 2017.

At the same time, the State Department official said that even though the parties would now have three consulates each, there is a distortion in the number of diplomatic and consular buildings. “We have chosen to allow the Russian government to maintain some of its annexes in an effort to arrest the downward spiral in our relationship,” the State Department spokesperson said.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has discussed the new restrictions with the American Secretary of State Rex Tillerson by telephone. He said that Russia will attentively study the new measures announced by the United States and then notify the U.S. of its reaction.

The Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs Alexey Chepa has said that Russia will adequately respond to the closing of the San Francisco consulate. The Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council’s International Affairs Committee Andrey Klimov noted that countermeasures will not necessarily mirror the closings of diplomatic buildings.