A restructuring of the White House National Security Council (NSC) got under way on Friday, as US President Donald Trump moved to slash the size and scope of the once-powerful body, five sources briefed on the matter said.
Staff dealing with a variety of major geopolitical issues, from Ukraine to Kashmir, were sent termination notices in the afternoon, the sources said on condition of anonymity.
The move came just weeks after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio took over from Mike Waltz as national security adviser.
Photo: AP
The NSC declined to comment.
The NSC restructuring is expected to further reduce the agency’s influence, transforming it from a powerful policymaking body into a small organization focused more on implementing the president’s agenda than on shaping it, the sources said.
In practice, the move is expected to grant more authority to the US Department of State, the US Department of Defense and other departments and agencies involved in diplomacy, national security and intelligence matters, the sources said.
The Financial Times (FT) has reported that NSC senior director for Asia Ivan Kanapathy remains in post, but his entire staff, including his China team, has been fired.
It remains unclear whether his deputy, Alex Wong, who is a well-respected official with hawkish views on China, remains in position, it said.
Several high-ranking staffers were fired earlier in the year after right-wing conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer presented Trump with a list of national security staffers she perceived to be disloyal.
The FT said that Loomer, who helped persuade Trump to fire Waltz, had also sought to remove Wong and Kanapathy.
The administration’s aim is to reduce the size of the NSC to just a few dozen people.
Four sources with knowledge of the plans said they expect the final headcount at the NSC to come out to about 50 people.
The NSC is traditionally the main body used by presidents to coordinate national security strategy. Its staff often make key decisions regarding the US’ foreign policy.
The body had more than 300 staffers under former US president Joe Biden, but even before the recent firings under Trump it was well less than half the size of Biden’s NSC.
Additional reporting by staff writer
NETWORK-MAPPING PROJECT: The database contains 170 detailed files of Taiwanese politicians and about 23 million records of household registration data in Taiwan China has developed a network-mapping project targeting political figures and parties in Taiwan to monitor public opinion during elections and to craft tailored influence campaigns aimed at dividing Taiwanese society, according to documents leaked by Chinese technology firm GoLaxy (中科天璣). The documents, collected by Taipei-based Doublethink Lab, showed a database was specifically created to gather detailed information on Taiwanese political figures, including their political affiliations, job histories, birthplaces, residences, education, religion and a brief biography about them. Several notable Taiwanese politicians are in the database, including President William Lai (賴清德), former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍),
RECOGNITION: Former Fijian prime minister Mahendra Chaudhry said that Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy serves as a stabilizing force in the Indo-Pacific region Taiwan can lead the unification of the Chinese people, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former Polish president Lech Walesa said in Taipei yesterday, adding that as the world order is changing, peaceful discussion would find good solutions, and that the use of force and coercion would always fail. Walesa made the remarks during his keynote address at a luncheon of the Yushan Forum in Taipei, titled “Indo-Pacific Partnership Prospects: Taiwan’s Values, Technology and Resilience,” organized by the Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Walesa said that he had been at the forefront of a big peaceful revolution and “if
North Korea tested nuclear-capable rocket launchers, state media reported yesterday, a day after Seoul detected the launch of about 10 ballistic missiles. The test comes after South Korean and US forces launched their springtime military drills, due to run until Thursday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday oversaw the testing of the multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The test involved 12 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery companies, it said. Kim said the drill gave Pyongyang’s enemies, within the 420km striking range, a sense of “uneasiness” and “a deep understanding
UPGRADED MISSILE: The Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology is reportedly to conduct a live-fire test of the Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missile on Thursday next week The US Army is planning to build new facilities to boost explosives production and strengthen its supply chain, a move aimed at addressing munitions shortages and supporting obligations to partners including Taiwan, Ukraine and Israel, Defense News reported. The army has issued a sources sought notice for a proposed Center of Excellence at the Blue Grass Army Depot in Kentucky, the report said. The facility would serve as a hub within the US industrial base for the production of key military explosives, including research department explosives (RDX) and high melting explosives (HMX), while also supporting research and development of next-generation materials. The proposed
RSS