Vladimir Putin is deciding how to retaliate after Australia kicked out two Russian spies from the embassy in Canberra.
The diplomats now have five days to leave Australia, in a show of solidarity with the UK over the poisoning of former double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury.
More than 100 Russian diplomats have been expelled from countries around the world, and Russian Ambassador Grigory Logvinov said President Putin is deciding how to respond.
"The final decision is taken by President of the Russian Federation," the top diplomat told reporters on Wednesday.
"The ambassador in the USA already said the embassy of Russia is working on different and relevant options which would be reported to the President and the President would make a final decision."
When the UK expelled 23 Russian diplomats, Russia retaliated by sending the same number of UK officials back.
Mr Logvinov said the diplomats being expelled from Australia were not spies.
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop hauled Mr Logvinov in for a "please explain" meeting on Wednesday, where he said Russia wants an investigation into the nerve agent attack.
"We want an absolutely proper investigation under the auspices of the convention on prohibition of chemical weapons," Mr Logvinov told Ms Bishop.
"We seek a credible answer from Russia": Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop. Source: AAP
But Ms Bishop said Russia had not declared its Novichok chemical weapons, which were used in the Skripal attempted assassination.
"This is the very convention that we believe Russia is in breach of by its failure to declare its Novichok program," she replied to Mr Logvinov.
"We seek a credible answer from Russia as to how its nerve agent could have been deployed in these circumstances."
Mr Logvinov said there was no evidence Russia was responsible but Ms Bishop said she had "seen this script before".
