VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Russia said on Tuesday it would announce a new ambassador to Britain in due course, weeks after its previous envoy left London at a time of exceptional tension in bilateral ties.
The departure of Andrei Kelin in July, after more than seven years in the post, prompted media speculation - denied by the embassy - that Moscow was downgrading diplomatic relations with Britain.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters that the naming of a new ambassador was the prerogative of President Vladimir Putin and the procedure for the appointment was not a public matter.
She said Kelin had served through an extremely difficult period "in the face of British efforts to completely dismantle bilateral relations".
Britain is a leading ally of Ukraine and provides it with weapons including missiles and drones. Russia warned Britain last month that it would face unspecified "consequences" for supplying drones that were used by Ukraine to attack Russian territory.
(Reporting by Olesya Astakhova, Dmitry Antonov, Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)