Austria has become the latest EU member to expel Russian diplomats.
A spokesperson for Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg announced on April 4 that four Russian diplomats were being forced to leave for acting in a way incompatible with their diplomatic status, joining a group of countries in the European Union that have taken similar action this week.
Unlike those other EU countries, which include France, Italy, and Germany, the spokesperson did not say the move was because of Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine and the alleged Russian atrocities committed there.
The three diplomats working at Russia's embassy and one based in Salzburg must leave the country by April 12, she said.
EU countries have ordered Russian diplomats out this week amid global outrage after news emerged of alleged atrocities committed by Russian forces against Ukrainian civilians in Bucha, north of the capital, Kyiv.
Journalists have seen the bodies of dozens of people, many of them shot at close range and some with their hands tied behind them, left on the streets of Bucha since Russian troops retreated last week.
Without offering any evidence, the Kremlin has claimed the deaths are fake.
In what amounts to one of the biggest diplomatic breakdowns of recent years, 206 Russian diplomats and embassy staff have been told since April 4 they are no longer welcome to stay by governments in Italy, France, Germany, and elsewhere.
In addition to that, more than 100 are reported to have already been thrown out since the beginning of Russia's latest invasion of Ukraine on February 24.