Igor Munteanu on Romania’s demand to reduce the staff of the Russian embassy: a natural step

Igor Munteanu commented on the decision of the Romanian Foreign Ministry to expel the Russian diplomats in terms of the initiative by the PAS member Andrian Cheptonar to ask the Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration for the parity of diplomats in the Russian Embassy in Moldova. Recall that according to Andrian Cheptonar, Russia should reduce the number of diplomats from 40 to 6. “The Russian Federation has more than a hundred employees. Accordingly, these figures suggest that diplomats and technical staff of the Russian embassy in Chisinau are also act other than diplomatic conventions stipulate, including espionage. We have also the issue of keeping the consulate in Transnistria, despite the repeated warnings of the Chisinau Foreign Ministry,” Igor Munteanu said. As for the request of the Romanian Foreign Ministry to reduce the Russian diplomatic staff in Romania, Munteanu called it “justified”. “This applies not only to Romania. Most Central and Eastern European states have already carried out similar diplomatic actions to signal the downgrading of relations with the aggressor state. This is an absolutely natural reaction,” the politician said. “As for Moldova, we have a more protracted pressing issue. The Russian Federation agreed to open a so-called diplomatic representation of Transnistria in Moscow, and it didn’t cease this center, involving the so-called recognition of the separatist republic, at Chisinau’s requests. On the contrary, they included them in some of their delegations, using their embassies and diplomatic missions to promote separatist leaders. It makes no sense for Russia to keep its entire staff here at war,” the CUB leader said. Recall that Romania decided to reduce the staff of the Russian Embassy in Bucharest by 40 people, aligning it with the manpower of the Romanian Embassy in Moscow. “Russia will respond similarly,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in this regard.