Whether a massive overhaul to the US Department of State would affect the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) remains unclear, as a spokesperson yesterday said the department would “continue to evaluate its global footprint” in this regard.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio yesterday unveiled an overhaul of the department, with plans to reduce staff in the US by 15 percent while closing and consolidating more than 100 bureaus worldwide.
The biggest change appears to be the division of US diplomatic focus into four regions: Eurasia, the Middle East, Latin America and the Asia-Pacific.
Photo: Reuters
The new version of the department would retain the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, whose responsibilities include Taiwan, South Korea, Japan and China.
As for whether the AIT would be affected, a department spokesperson told the Central News Agency that the department would continue to evaluate its global footprint to ensure it is best positioned to represent the American people and address contemporary challenges.
The reorganization plan, announced by Rubio on social media and detailed in documents obtained by the Associated Press (AP), was driven in part by the need to find a new home for the remaining functions of the US Agency for International Development.
Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said that the “sweeping changes will empower our talented diplomats,” but would not result in the immediate dismissal of personnel.
It includes consolidating 734 bureaus and offices down to 602, as well as transitioning 137 offices to another location within the department to "increase efficiency,” according to a fact sheet obtained by AP.
There would be a “reimagined” office focused on foreign and humanitarian affairs to coordinate the aid programs overseas that remain at the department.
Although the plan is to implement major changes in the department’s bureaucracy and personnel, it is far less drastic than an alleged reorganization plan that was circulated by some officials over the weekend.
Numerous senior department officials, including Rubio himself, denied that the plan was real.
Work that had been believed targeted in that alleged leaked document survived — at least as bureau names on a chart — in the plan that Rubio released yesterday.
That includes offices for Africa affairs, migration and refugee issues, and democracy efforts.
It was not immediately clear whether US embassies were included in the installations slated for closing.
The earlier reports of wholesale closings of embassies, especially in Africa, had triggered warnings about shrinking the US diplomatic capacity and influence abroad.
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