(AFP) – The Trump administration is removing dozens of ambassadors appointed under the Biden administration as part of a broad reshuffle to align the diplomatic corps with its foreign policy priorities. The heads of mission, mostly career diplomats, have been notified they must leave their posts by mid-January, according to the American Foreign Service Association, which represents State Department employees. Press reports said ambassadors from 30 countries will be affected, particularly in Africa. The recalls were first reported by Politico.
While it is customary for an administration to reshuffle ambassadors appointed to strategic posts or capitals and to appoint donors or supporters, such a sweeping change targeting career diplomats is unusual before their term ends or their successor is appointed. The American Foreign Service Association said it had received “credible reports from our members in diplomatic posts around the world that multiple career ambassadors, appointed during the Biden administration, have been directed by phone call to vacate their posts by January 15 or 16.”
“No explanation was given for these recalls,” the association added in its post on Facebook. “Removing senior diplomats without cause undermines US credibility abroad and sends a chilling signal to the professional Foreign Service: experience and an oath to the Constitution take a backseat to political loyalty,” it said.
A senior State Department official said Monday that changing ambassadors was “a standard process in any administration.” “An ambassador is a personal representative of the President, and it is the President’s right to ensure that he has individuals in these countries who advance the America First agenda,” the official said on condition of anonymity. The official did not confirm the details of the dismissals or which countries were affected.
In his second term, President Donald Trump and his Secretary of State Marco Rubio have overhauled American diplomacy to focus priorities such as combating illegal immigration, cutting foreign aid, and diversity policies. Rubio has overseen the dismissal of hundreds of personnel within the State Department, and Trump has placed loyalists as key ambassadors.
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