News In Brief

Britain expels Soviet envoy and USSR replies in kind

Britain expelled a senior Soviet diplomat after declaring him persona non grata and the Soviets retaliated by ordering the expulsion of a British diplomat from Moscow, the Foreign Office said Tuesday.

Earlier Britain announced it had ordered the deportation of two Czechoslovak diplomats for ''activities incompatible with their status as diplomats'' - the usual diplomatic term for spying.

The deportations came as the Belgian government announced the expulsion last week of two East Germans - one a diplomat - charged with spying. Over the weekend, Belgian officials also arrested two Soviet citizens on grounds they tried to obtain NATO secrets.