“Ukraine’s foreign ministry\u00a0said\u00a0Saturday that Russia briefly detained one of its diplomats in St Petersburg, marking the latest instance of tension between\u00a0the two countries,”\u00a0The Hill<\/em><\/a>\u00a0reports Saturday morning.<\/p>\n The diplomat, identified as\u00a0Oleksandr Sosoniuk was taken into custody by Russia’s FSB security service shortly after meeting with a Russian citizen.\u00a0Sosoniuk is being accused of attempting to gain classified information from Russian databases from a local ‘asset’.<\/strong><\/p>\n “This activity is incompatible with the status of a diplomatic employee and is\u00a0hostile to the Russian Federation<\/strong>. The foreign diplomat will be dealt with in accordance with international law,”\u00a0the FSB said<\/a>\u00a0in a statement.<\/p>\n The diplomat has been given till April 22 to depart the country,\u00a0Reuters<\/em>\u00a0reports. The diplomat was reportedly\u00a0held for several hours in Russian custody<\/strong>\u00a0before being delivered back to Ukraine’s consulate in St. Petersburg.<\/p>\n While the FSB said he was essentially caught ‘red-handed’, Ukraine’s foreign ministry is fuming, saying in a statement,\u00a0“The Ukrainian side will soon decide how to respond to this provocation, taking into account current practice,” and condemned the detention, however brief.<\/p>\n It’s the latest incident to send tensions soaring at a moment Kiev is accusing Moscow of preparing for an ‘offensive’ in eastern Ukraine due to a large Russian troop build-up on the border and in Crimea, which by many accounts is the largest mustering of forces since 2014.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/assets.zerohedge.com\/s3fs-public\/styles\/inline_image_mobile\/public\/inline-images\/fsbfile.png?itok=swlbwpNR\")