The U.S. State Department is preparing to close nearly a dozen consulates, mostly located in Western Europe, as Washington seeks to reduce its staff worldwide.
Points of attention
- The US State Department plans to close nearly 10 consulates in Western Europe to reduce costs and optimize its operations, potentially affecting diplomatic activities in the region.
- The consolidation of expert bureaus at the Washington headquarters is being considered as part of the initiative, impacting areas such as human rights, refugees, and criminal justice.
- Critics warn that the closures could weaken American leadership and create space for adversaries like Russia and China to expand their influence.
US State Department to close dozens of consulates
This is reported by anonymous American officials.
In particular, the US Department of State is considering the possibility of uniting expert bureaus at its headquarters in Washington: this concerns the areas of human rights, refugees, criminal justice, etc.
The news agency adds that American missions around the world have asked to consider reducing American and local staff by at least 10%, as President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk have launched a campaign to cut spending in the US federal budget.
During the election campaign, Trump promised to "clean up the deep state" by firing bureaucrats he considered disloyal.
According to critics, the potential reduction of US diplomatic missions, along with the elimination of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), risks undermining American leadership and leaving a dangerous space that could be filled by adversaries — Russia and China.
Three Reuters sources told Reuters that Leipzig, Hamburg and Düsseldorf in Germany, Bordeaux, Rennes, Lyon and Strasbourg in France and Florence in Italy are on the list of smaller consulates the State Department is considering closing, along with the US consulates in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, and Ponta Delgada.
"The State Department continues to assess our global position to ensure we are best positioned to address today's challenges on behalf of the American people," a State Department spokesperson said.
