"We are sorry to confirm that considering the decision to close the Israeli Embassy in Minsk, Belarus was forced to take a series of measures to terminate the activities of its diplomatic mission in Tel Aviv based on the principle of reciprocity," the statement quoted Mironchik as saying.
The spokesman said that Israel had closed its embassy in Minsk in 2003, but in less than a year the diplomatic mission resumed its work.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon told RIA Novosti that Israel had decided to close the embassy in Minsk due to budget savings. According to Nahshon, the diplomatic mission will stop its work in 2016, but the exact date has not yet been approved.
Former Foreign Minister of Israel Avigdor Lieberman labeled the reason of budget savings "ridiculous" and condemned the move of Tel Aviv, saying relatives of almost 130,000 people of Belarusian origin living in Israel would be forced to go to Israeli embassies in other countries to obtain official papers.
