Foreign Minister Nicu Popescu has announced that Moldova is drastically reducing the number of accredited Russian diplomats allowed into the country.
Popescu, who made the announcement at the start of a government meeting on July 26, said the move will result in fewer "individuals to destabilize the country."
He added that for decades Moldova has been "the target of quite hostile types of activities and policies on the part of the Russian Federation," with some of those activities carried out through the embassy.
"It's very important that diplomatic missions focus on developing good relations between countries," Popescu said.
"Or, since a sizeable number of diplomats of a country are focused on efforts to destabilize our state...we decided together with the political leadership to limit the number of accredited Russian Federation diplomats so that a smaller number of destabilizing individuals remain here."
Government spokesman Daniel Voda said the number of Russian diplomats will be reduced by some 75 percent -- to 10 from 37 -- and the number of technical personnel to 15 from 34.
Russia must comply with the decision by August 15, the Foreign Ministry said.
Since Moldova gained independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991, Moscow has been continuously holding considerable sway in the country.
Russia still keeps more than 1,000 troops in Moldova's breakaway region of Transdniester, ostensibly as peacekeepers after Chisinau and Russia-backed separatists fought a short but bloody war in 1992 that was curbed by Moscow's intervention on the side of the insurgents.
The small country of 2.6 million has received thousands of Ukrainian refugees and initially voiced fears of a potential Russian invasion aided by the troops stationed in Transdniester.
Russia's Ambassador to Moldova Oleg Vasnetsov was summoned on July 25 to the Moldovan Foreign Ministry following a media investigation that found that there were an "excessive" number of antennas on the roof of the embassy building.
The investigation by The Insider and Jurnal TV found that there are many antennas capable of receiving various electronic signals mounted on the embassy roof and identified individuals who operate the antennas and who are reported to have links with Russian intelligence.
Vasnetsov argued that the antennas were installed during the construction of the embassy in the late 1990s when phone networks and the Internet were of poor quality in Moldova.
"This so-called espionage scandal is just an excuse to implement a decision already made some time ago to reduce the number of diplomatic staff," Vasnetsov said after the meeting.
"In our opinion, this move seriously undermines the dialogue between our countries and is not in the spirit of friendly relations."
Since beating Moscow-backed incumbent Igor Dodon in November 2020, U.S.-educated President Maia Sandu has firmly steered Moldova toward the West and last year gained an invitation for her country to open negotiations for European Union membership.