Obama’s announcement coincided with the release of a Department of Homeland Security and FBI file that draws a link between the hacking and theft of emails from the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and Clinton campaign’s emails and Russian intelligence. The move against the diplomats from the Russian embassy in Washington and consulate in San Francisco is part of a series of actions announced on Thursday to punish Russia for a campaign of intimidation of American diplomats in Moscow and interference in the U.S. election. The diplomats were declared persona non grata for acting in a “manner inconsistent with their diplomatic status.”

Obama said Russians will no longer have access to two Russian government-owned compounds in the United States, in Maryland and in New York. The Russian foreign minister called US allegations of Russia’s interference in the US election campaign “groundless.”

The US on Thursday ordered 35 Russian diplomats to leave the country and ordered the closure of two Russian compounds. The Obama administration was also announcing on Thursday a series of retaliatory measures against Russia for hacking into U.S. political institutions and individuals and leaking information to help President-elect Donald Trump and other Republican candidates, two U.S. officials said.
The United States expels 35 Russian diplomats over the alleged Russian interference during the U.S.'s 2016 presidential election.