MOSCOW, July 1 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's finance minister said Saturday Russia would allocate extra funds to tighten security at its embassies abroad.
The statement was made in the wake of a tragedy in Iraq when one Russian Embassy employee was shot dead in a June 3 attack in Baghdad and four others were kidnapped before being executed by an al-Qaeda linked cell.
"We have already drafted proposals jointly with the Foreign Ministry... to provide extra security equipment and increase security staff at our embassies," Alexei Kudrin said in an interview with Russia's 24-hour news channel Vesti.
The minister added that the government intended to form a fund to pay higher wages for diplomats starting from January 1 next year.
At a meeting with senior Russian diplomats in Moscow on Wednesday, President Vladimir Putin promised that wages for diplomats would soon be raised substantially.
