MOSCOW, February 12. /TASS/. Russia’s foreign diplomatic establishments are successfully coping with the increased load of paperwork for issuing documents to expatriate Russian citizens after Western countries cut the allocated numbers of diplomatic staff, Russian Foreign Ministry Consular Department Head Alexey Klimov told TASS in an interview.

"The unfriendly actions of Western countries, which resulted in the 'physical' reduction of the Russian consular presence abroad as a result of the expulsion of hundreds of our diplomats and the shutdown of a number of foreign institutions, have hit ordinary people as well. In some cases, they have led to a reduction in the volume of consular services provided and the growth of lines for the registration of basic documents (passports, notarial and civil registry documents)," the diplomat said. "Despite the creation of artificial difficulties for our work, the foreign missions, even with a reduced structure, are fully performing the tasks and functions assigned to them and providing all necessary support and assistance to Russian citizens living abroad," he added.

Klimov cited the results of the passport-related work of Russian foreign offices as a clear confirmation of his words. "At the end of 2023, about 468,000 passports were issued to Russians living abroad, which is 30.1% more than one year earlier," the official said.