INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Forty diplomats and Russian embassy staff in Bucharest were set to leave Romania on Saturday following a request from the government, with
ties worsening between the two countries since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.Eleven diplomats and 29 technical and administrative staff,
accompanied by their families, "will leave Romania on board a civilian aircraft belonging to a Russian airline," the Romanian foreign
ministry said.Romanian broadcasters showed an Ilyushin Il-96 aircraft landing at Bucharest airport
It was due to take off later on Saturday, according to airport sources quoted in the local press.The decision "reflects the current level of
Russian diplomats suspected of espionage.The number of staff at the Russian embassy has been slashed by more than half, Bucharest says.
