Russia to cut bureaucracy by 20%

Russian PresidentDmitry Medvedev says he has asked senior government officials to come up with ways to cut the number of federal officials by 20 percent.

Official reports put the number of federal officials within the Russian bureaucracy at 850,000 although independent estimates run as high as 1.5 million, ITAR-Tass reported Tuesday.

"I instruct you to prepare proposals on this issue and report to me," Medvedev told senior officials at a meeting to identify possible reduction targets.

"Needless to say, this is rather a tough measure, which can help deal with a number of issues.'

RIA Novosti reported the president also said "such decisions cannot be made mechanically or be based purely on financial considerations."

Medvedev has already pledged to slash numbers of police.