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Kerry orders State Department review of records retention

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US Secretary of State John Kerry walks outside the hotel during a break after a bilateral meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif  for a new round of Nuclear Talks with Iran, in Lausanne, Switzerland, Friday, March 27, 2015

US Secretary of State John Kerry walks outside the hotel during a break after a bilateral meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif for a new round of Nuclear Talks with Iran, in Lausanne, Switzerland, Friday, March 27, 2015

Jean-christophe Bott, Associated Press

WASHINGTON — The State Department has ordered an internal audit of the agency's record keeping after revelations that former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton used a private email account and server during her tenure.

Secretary of State John Kerry sent a letter to the department's inspector general earlier this week asking for the review.

He says it is critical for the department to "preserve a full and complete record of American foreign policy" and for the U.S. public to have access to that record.

Kerry says many improvements have been made already. But he wants additional recommendations.

Among the questions Kerry outlines are how to retain information in light of changing technology, the agency's global presence and increasing demands from Congress.