Citing a "significant decrease in workload," the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will close its Moscow office next month.
The agency released a statement earlier this week that explained the situation.
"Due to a significant decrease in workload, USCIS will permanently close its field office in Moscow, Russia, on March 29, 2019," the statement reads. "The last day the office will be open to the public and accepting applications is Feb. 28, 2019."
The USCIS office in Athens, Greece, will now handle all inquiries from the Russian Federation, along with Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.
Tensions between the U.S. and Russia have heated up in recent years amid claims Russia has tried to interfere in U.S. elections. American sanctions placed on several Russia citizens and businesses have only further irritated Russia.
The USCIS website claims 19,000 government employees and contractors work for the agency in more than 200 offices worldwide.