BERLIN, May 31. /TASS/. Russia has been asked to close four of its five consulates in Germany in response to Moscow’s recent decision to reduce the number of employees at German institutions across Russia, German Foreign Ministry spokesman Christopher Burger said on Wednesday.

Russia told Berlin last month that it was cutting "German presence in Russia to 350 people," the spokesman said.

"As for the Russian presence in Germany, a decision has been made on the condition of reciprocity in order to maintain the parity of mutual presence both in terms of staff and institutions. In this regard, we have decided to withdraw the consent for the activities of four out of five Russian consulates in Germany," he said at a news conference. "The Russian Foreign Ministry has been notified about this today. It has been demanded that Russia immediately initiate the process of closing four consulates in Germany and to complete it no later than December 31, 2023."

Burger said the interests of Russia in Germany will be represented by the Russian Embassy in Berlin and one consulate. Russian consulates are now located in Bonn, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, and Frankfurt am Main. Burger was unable to say how many staff were currently working in the Russian diplomatic missions.

On May 27, the Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper reported, citing sources, that several hundred German diplomats, teachers, and employees of the Goethe Institute cultural center working in Russia will leave the country by the end of May. According to the report, it was a result of Moscow's decision to limit the number of staff at German institutions in Russia to 350 people. Among those who will have to leave are allegedly diplomats and the so-called cultural intermediaries - teachers and employees of the Goethe Institute. Later that day, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told the DPA news agency that Moscow was forced to respond to Berlin’s anti-Russian moves. She said that the German Foreign Ministry acted in secret from the public when it denied that the country was expelling Russian diplomats, even though they had to leave later.

On May 29, Zakharova said that Russia will respond harshly to any further steps by Germany to reduce Russian diplomatic presence in the country. She said that Russia, based on the principle of reciprocity, had introduced quotas for the staff of German foreign missions, leaving it up to Berlin to decide who would have to leave their posts. Zakharova insisted that Berlin was the first to scale back Russian diplomatic presence.