Ukrainian Foreign Minister Leonid Kozhara has said that the Foreign Ministry intends to introduce the practice of appointing non-resident ambassadors as part of its reform.

"We will gradually introduce the practice of appointing non-resident ambassadors, because there is no need to create full-fledged embassies in some countries," the minister said in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine, speaking about the ministry's reform.

He explained that he was speaking about the diplomats who will not permanently reside in the country in which they are to carry out their diplomatic mission.

"Many countries use such practices. For instance, Singapore's ambassador to Ukraine lives in Singapore and comes to Ukraine if need be," the minister said.

In addition, he explained that the Foreign Ministry is currently holding a so-called classification – a rating mechanism for evaluating the current level and prospects of cooperation with individual countries.

"It (the classification mechanism) is ready and is currently functioning in test mode. I think we have created a very interesting document over several months of work. The system itself is digital and envisaged awarding points [to rank a country]," Kozhara said.

The foreign minister said that depending on the results of the classification the ministry will discover in which countries it needs to strengthen the diplomatic missions of Ukraine, and which embassies should be closed.

"I think this will produce very surprising results that will affect the overall system of our diplomatic missions. A rational view of their work abroad may be created for the first time," Kozhara said.

So far, according to the minister, the ministry has decided to apply the system in test mode to five countries in each region.