BRUSSELS (Sputnik) – All NATO partner delegations will have to reduce their staff to 30 people to allow the alliance to better manage relations, a NATO official said Friday.
"I can confirm that NATO has decided to introduce a guideline limiting the number of staff in partner delegations to 30. These guidelines apply to all partners," the official told RIA Novosti.
According to the source, NATO has 41 partners at the moment, and its relations are deepening with other countries as well.
According to the source, NATO partners will have nine months to comply with this regulation.
On the same day, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexey Meshkov said this "odd" decision resembles those taken during the Cold War.
Relations between Russia and NATO fell apart after Crimea reunified with Russia in March 2014. In April, the alliance suspended cooperation with Russia.
NATO also boosted its military presence in Eastern Europe close to Russia's borders. Moscow has repeatedly stressed that a NATO expansion toward Russian borders could further aggravate existing tensions and undermine regional security.
