Belarus has asked the United States embassy in Minsk to further cut its staff amid tensions caused by U.S. sanctions against the state, according to reports reaching Moscow.

The statement issued on Wednesday by the Belarussian Foreign Ministry did not specify the number of U.S. diplomats in Minsk, but Foreign Minister Viktor Gaisenok has asked the U.S. to cut its diplomatic staff to seven earlier this month.

It's the third time Minsk suggests Washington to reduce its diplomatic mission since March when the two ambassadors were called back for consultations.

Bilateral ties between the United States and Belarus has been tense since Washington launched new sanctions against Belarussian national oil products firm Belneftekhim last November.

(Xinhua News Agency April 24, 2008)