US embassies told to prepare for staff cuts as Trump overhauls diplomatic corps, sources say
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Some embassies had been asked to look into reducing both US staff and locally-employed staff by 10 per cent each.
PHOTO: AFP
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WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s administration has asked US embassies worldwide to prepare for staff cuts, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Feb 13, as part of his effort to overhaul the US diplomatic corps.
The sources said some embassies had been asked to look into reducing both US employees and locally employed staff by 10 per cent each, with a list of the workforce to be sent by Feb 14 to the State Department, which will then determine further actions.
US embassies around the world employ both diplomats and local staff. Most embassy staff come from the host country, according to the National Museum of American Diplomacy.
Separately, a US official said that around 60 contractors at the State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour had been let go in recent weeks and that there was a possibility of further cuts in other bureaus.
ABC News first reported that US embassies had been told to start planning for staff reductions.
The State Department said in a statement that it does not comment on internal personnel matters.
“The State Department continues to assess our global posture to ensure we are best positioned to address modern challenges on behalf of the American people,” a spokesperson said.
The moves come as Mr Trump tries to reshape the diplomatic corps, issuing on Feb 12 an executive order directing Secretary of State Marco Rubio to revamp the foreign service to ensure “faithful and effective implementation” of his foreign policy agenda.
The order, which follows efforts to dismantle the US Agency for International Development
He has also repeatedly pledged to “clean out the deep state” by firing bureaucrats whom he deems disloyal.
The order, titled “One Voice for America’s Foreign Relations”, also says failure to implement the President’s agenda is grounds for professional discipline, which may result in dismissal.
“The Secretary must maintain an exceptional workforce of patriots to implement this policy effectively,” the order reads.
The order also directs a potential revamp of the Foreign Affairs Manual, a comprehensive set of policies and procedures that lay out how the State Department operates, at home and abroad.
Just hours after taking office on Jan 20, Mr Trump ordered a freeze of most US foreign aid
USAid, the chief US humanitarian agency, became the first target of the effort led by billionaire Elon Musk, a close Trump ally, to reduce the size of the US government.
Since Jan 20, Mr Musk has dispatched members of his Department of Government Efficiency to scrutinise sensitive personnel and payment information in government computer systems.
Aside from USAid, he also led the drive to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, an agency that protects Americans from unscrupulous lenders. REUTERS
