BUCHAREST, July 1. /TASS/. Forty employees of the Russian embassy left Romania on Saturday to comply with the country’s demand that Moscow scale back its diplomatic mission, the embassy told TASS.

The employees and their family members, a total of about 80 people, took a special flight to Moscow as there are no regular flights between the countries.

Some embassy employees had returned home earlier, so the latest departure brings the number of Russians that have left the country to comply with the downsizing demand to 140.

On June 8, the Romanian Foreign Ministry demanded that the Russian embassy's staff be reduced by more than 50 people within 30 days. The Foreign Ministry said the decision "reflected the current level of bilateral relations" in the context of the special military operation conducted by Russia in Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow viewed the demand as a hostile move that would lead to further degradation of relations. She warned that the Romanian demarche wouldn’t go unanswered.