The state will close diplomatic missions and fire overseas employees

High-ranking State Department officials have plans to close overseas consulates by this summer and are considering closing more missions.

The department will also be firing many local citizens who work on hundreds of missions. These workers make up two-thirds of the institutional workforce, and in many countries they form the foundation of US diplomats' knowledge about their environment.

The reduction is part of President Trump's bigger slash of the federal government and part of his “America First” foreign policy, and the US will end or reduce its once important ways of exercising global influence, including democracy, human rights and aid work.

The move comes when China, the major US rival, overtakes the US in the number of diplomatic posts around the world. China has developed strong national ties, particularly in Asia and Africa, and is exerting greater power in international organizations.

The widespread closure of missions, particularly the embassy as a whole, could hinder the work of most federal governments and violate US national security.

Embassies of the embassies, the military, intelligence news, law enforcement agencies, health, commerce, trade, finance and other agencies all monitor the development of the host country and work with local officials to counter everything from terrorism to infectious diseases to collapsed currencies.

The widespread cut outlook has already created some uncertainty within the central intelligence agency. The majority of secret American intelligence agents work in embassies and consulates, pretending to be diplomats, and the closure of diplomats will reduce the CIA choice where spies are placed.

As the State Department is bleeding senior staff through voluntary resignation, cuts are being made, and employment freezes mean the workforce is reducing attrition. The current five-week course, primarily for senior career diplomats, including ambassadors, has around 160 people choosing to retire. This is one of the largest cohorts of retired officers in recent memory.

Approximately 700 employees, 450 of whom were career diplomats, handed over the first two months of the year, officials said. That's an amazing percentage. Before 2025, about 800 people had resigned within a year.

According to two US officials with knowledge of evolving debate, efforts to reduce diplomatic posts and overseas staffing are probably part of an internal campaign to cut the State Department's operating budget by up to 20%. Like others who spoke for this article, they discussed a sensitive plan on terms of anonymity.

Possible reductions and related proposals could evolve as internal debate continues.

This process has been accelerated by a team led by Elon Musk. This is embedded in government agencies looking for what is called government waste. One of the team members, Edward Coristine, is a 19-year-old engineer who is publicly attending “big ball,” and is at the State Department, directing agency budget cuts. The department's budget and employee count are only a small percentage compared to the Pentagon budget.

According to three U.S. officials who have seen or described the memo, the memos circulating within the department suggest that dozens of consulates are closed, primarily in Western Europe. That action is taking place as Trump alienates the US from his democratic allies in Europe in support of strengthening ties with Russia.

A study by the Lowy Institute shows that 271 global diplomatic posts in the US lag behind China's 274, but now have a dominance in Europe.

The State Department last month notified two Congressional committees of the closure. And on Monday, departmental authorities told the committee it was also planning to close the consulate in Gaziantep, Turkey.

These consulates are small operations, usually with one or two American diplomats and local citizen staff. However, they will help to gather and spread information in a remote location from the capital and issue visas.

In mid-February, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, sent a memo to the Mission Chief, who is usually ambassador, saying that staffing overseas posts will “keep the minimum necessary state to implement the president's foreign policy priorities.” He also said that a US official who saw the memo should be abolished for two years.

Cable, sent to Global Mission from Washington on Wednesday, instructs all employees to look for “waste, fraud, abuse.” This phrase is used by Musk to justify his deep cut across the government. US officials who saw the cable have been told that authorities will support Musk's mission by confirming all contracts ranging from $10,000 to $250,000.

It could contribute to the proposal for thrashing of up to 20% of the State Department's operating budget. US officials said the cuts were being used “overall,” but it is unclear what that means. Under one proposal, the work of a closed embassy could be absorbed by another embassy in the same area, or by a local mission hub.

The plan to close 12 consulates, primarily in Western Europe, is more specific. State Department officials share the list with Congress, but it can still change. The list includes the consulate in Florence, Italy. Strasbourg, France. Hamburg, Germany. Ponta Delgada, Portugal. It also includes the Brazilian consulate, according to US officials who saw the list. Some details of the planned closure have been reported previously by Politico.

“The State Department continues to appreciate our global attitude to ensure that we are in the best position to address modern challenges on behalf of Americans,” the agency said in a statement Thursday that it was asked about the various proposed changes.

In his remarks to employees on his first day in the department, Rubio said that while he values ​​the diplomatic corps, there is “change.”

“Change is not intended to be destructive. They are not intended to be punitive,” he said. “The change is because it requires a 21st century agency that can move at a speed of relevance due to the clichés that many people use.”

Since then, Rubio has overseen dramatic reductions in foreign aid, allowing split political appointees Musk and Pete Marrocco to broadcast or leave thousands of employees to the U.S. International Development Agency, sister agency of the State Department. It raised questions among diplomats about Rubio's commitment.

The unrest among diplomats is further fuered by the fact that Rubio saw no indication that he had tried to weaken democratic Ukraine and oppose Trump's efforts to embrace Russia. Diplomats noticed a viral photo of Rubio sitting on an oval office sofa when Trump cried out at Ukrainian President Voldymee Zelensky last Friday.

State Department foreign and civil servant employees are preparing for a round of layoffs. The department has approximately 76,000 employees, of which 50,000 local citizens are overseas. Of the remaining, about 14,000 have been replaced overseas, diplomats known as foreign services officers, and 10,000 are civil servants, working primarily in Washington.

US officials said the mission chief had been asked to submit a list of local citizens with the lowest number of local citizens by mid-February.

Diplomats and civil servants could be pushed through an extended order, a mechanism that government agencies can use to fire workers. Another US official said these types of orders are supposed to take into account seniority and duties.

In recent weeks, a list of 700 civil servants potentially fired has been circulating within the department, but so far, only 18 people who have been abiding by probation status have been let go, U.S. officials said.

Attempts to cut workers have been rewind for now. In early February, the department issued an order to contracting companies to finish work on 60 contractors in the Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Bureau. The companies have placed workers, including high-tech and local experts, on unpaid leave. However, after internal discussion, the department asked most or everyone to return this week.

High officials are discussing the integration of some of the departments. One proposal will be downgraded, as well as the Bureau of Mergers, Democracy and Human Rights, and the Bureau that addresses the issues of refugee and immigration with Advisors. The department's Foreign Aid Office and small remains of the USAID will be placed under the same umbrella.

The authorities also propose to consolidate some of the regional departments of the department. They are run by a deputy secretary in Washington and oversees policy and operations across large strips around the world. The bureau is at the heart of American diplomacy.