The British foreign minister, Robin Cook, has announced a package of measures to modernize and expand British diplomatic representation abroad.

He said the Foreign Office would invest in a global network of secure electronic mail to replace diplomatic telegrams.

He also said he would reverse years of decline in personnel by appointing two-hundred new diplomats, many of whom would specialize in commerce.

The expansion, Mr Cook said, would be mainly in the Caspian Basin and in countries belonging to or aspiring to join the European Union.