US embassies told to reduce staff – media
The US State Department has directed embassies worldwide to prepare for staff reductions, ABC News and Reuters reported on Thursday, citing sources.
Some diplomatic missions have been instructed to consider reducing both US and locally employed staff by 10%, Reuters wrote, citing sources close to the matter.
Senior embassy officials have reportedly been asked to compile comprehensive lists of all employees, including tenured, untenured, and temporary staff, sources familiar with the issue told ABC News.
The reported directive was issued shortly before US President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “One Voice for America’s Foreign Relations,” which mandates that State Department staff align with his administration’s foreign policy goals.
The order emphasizes the need for the US secretary of state to maintain an “exceptional workforce of patriots”
In line with efforts to cut costs, the Trump administration is also considering eliminating several US consulates and diplomatic posts around the world, NBC News reported on Wednesday. Consulates in Europe, Canada, Mexico, and the Pacific Islands are among those under review, the outlet said. Officials have reportedly been asked to assess the relevance of these facilities to Trump’s America First agenda, considering factors such as diplomatic necessity and potential additional government activities like military contacts and intelligence gathering.
The moves are part of President Trump’s broader initiative to reshape the federal workforce. He has proposed a 10% reduction in government employees, in a move to streamline operations and reduce costs. The US administration has already initiated extensive layoffs of probationary workers, impacting nearly all who have not yet attained civil service protection.
Additionally, the administration has launched the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by billionaire Elon Musk, in order to streamline federal operations with a target of trimming $2 trillion in expenditures from the federal budget. Musk has acknowledged that achieving this goal is a long shot, while suggesting that the drive might result in achieving $1 trillion in cuts.
As part of its cost-cutting measures, DOGE has already implemented significant reductions, including the dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), as well as imposing severe restrictions on National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants as part of a broader strategy to eliminate wasteful spending and increase government efficiency.
