State Department could close dozens of embassies >
consulates while seeking $26B in ‘drastic’ spending cuts >
By Josh Christenson and
Caitlin Doornbos
Published April 15, 2025, 4:01 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration could close or “drastically” downsize its footprint at
dozens of US embassies and consulates — including at what some former US officials have said
are critical installations in Somalia and Iraq —
while reducing spending on agency operations by up to $26 billion, according to
memos obtained by The Post.
One State Department document shows at least 17 consulates — in the UK, France, Germany,
Greece, Italy, South Korea, and Bosnia and Herzegovina — and 10 embassies —
including outposts in Malta, the Maldives, Grenada,
Luxembourg and several African nations — have been suggested for the chopping block.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks as President Donald Trump meets with El Salvador's
President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, April 14, 2025. 4
Secretary of State Marco Rubio could be overseeing the closure of dozens of US embassies
and consulates — and up to $26 billion in total spending cuts to agency operations, according
to memos obtained by The Post. AFP via Getty Images
Three significant posts in Iraq were also designated as part of cost-reduction efforts —
with the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center, a massive compound in the Iraqi capital,
slated for potential closure and missions in Baghdad and Erbil
listed as places to “drastically reduce expenditures.”
“Reductions to the footprint in Iraq are a long time coming but ‘drastic’ measures at Erbil
could truly jeopardize the lives of countless Christians and Yazidis,” one former US Agency
for International Development (USAID) official told
The Post, noting “the good work” done there in President Trump’s first administration.
Other locations in Japan and Canada may also be restructured to reduce their footprints,
along with so-called “embassies in exile” for Yemen, located in Saudi Arabia; and
Venezuela, located in Colombia.
Much of the downsizing will lead to diplomats being rehoused in nearby stations.
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Another State Department memo outlined up to $26 billion in spending cuts for the upcoming
fiscal year, with $4.5 billion lopped off from diplomatic engagement work and $21.5 billion
terminated for foreign assistance based on fiscal year 2025 spending levels.
The April 10 memo, drafted by recently departed USAID deputy administrator
Peter Marocco and State Department Bureau of Budget and Planning Director
Douglas Pitkin, suggested $28.4 billion for agency operations as recommended
by the Office of Management and Budget — with $20.4 billion in rescissions.
President Donald Trump gestures to the crowd as he departs after welcoming the 2025 College
Football National Champions, the Ohio State University football team, during an event on the
South Lawn of the White House, Monday, April 14, 2025, in Washington. 4
“’Drastic’ measures at Erbil could truly jeopardize the lives of countless Christians and Yezidis,”
one former USAID official told The Post, noting “the good work” done there in President Trump’s
first administration. AP
“The President has made it clear that he is committed to cutting the federal deficit and improving
the return on investment for the American people,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement.
“As the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has said, the Administration’s funding decisions
will be reflected in the President’s Budget Request that will be provided to Congress soon.”
The spokesperson added that no closures had been announced yet “and operations continue as normal.”
OMB had already put forward a plan to claw back $8.3 billion “in wasteful foreign aid spending”
from the 2025 budget, according to a memo exclusively obtained by The Post on Monday,
which was forwarded to key congressional Republicans.
The State Department budget memo further floated eliminating funding for the United Nations
and NATO, roughly 50% in overall cuts to humanitarian assistance and global health programs
that have included HIV treatments, as well as clawing
back unobligated funds approved by Congress and signed into law by former President
Joe Biden as part of the bipartisan CHIPS Act.
It also highlighted a novel “America First Opportunities Fund” to be set up in fiscal year
2026 with $2.1 billion in spending — advocating for strategic priorities in countries such
as Jordan and India or further work on countering China.
Peter Marocco, deputy administrator-designate at the U.S. Agency for International
Development (USAID), arrives to meet with members of Congress to discuss foreign
assistance, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S. March 5, 2025. 4
In total, the April 10 memo, drafted in part by recently departed USAID deputy
administrator Peter Marocco, suggested $28.4 billion for agency operations. REUTERS
State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a Tuesday briefing that there
was “no final plan” on the 2026 budget and spending cuts were ultimately “up to the White House.”
“I can tell you that whatever you’ve seen in public was not released from this entity,
was not released from this department. It was not released by the secretary,” Bruce added.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier Tuesday had trumpeted “another 138 grants worth
$214 million” that he “canceled,” as the Elon Musk-inspired Department of Government
Efficiency combs through agency spending programs to trim the federal budget.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks as U.S. Vice President JD Vance, U.S.
Attorney General Pam Bondi, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem,
and U.S. President Donald Trump look on during a meeting
with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele (not pictured) in the Oval Office at the White House
in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 14, 2025. 4
“We are cleaning up the mess the previous administration left and rebuilding an agency
that’s focused on putting America First,” Rubio said Tuesday. REUTERS
“The American taxpayers should not be funding misguided programs like ‘Building the
Migrant Domestic Worker-Led Movement’ in Lebanon or ‘Get the Trolls Out!’ in the
United Kingdom,” Rubio posted on X.
“We are cleaning up the mess the previous administration left and rebuilding an agency
that’s focused on putting America First.”
Former US officials have indicated that the embassies and consulates singled out already
had fairly limited personnel to help Americans with visa services and send diplomatic cables
back to Washington, DC, with one calling the closure
of the embassies and consulates “unprecedented at this level.”
“Closures sometimes need to happen,” the ex-USAID official said, though they added
that is usually done in close coordination with Congress.
“These decisions are concerning and signal a further retreat from the world stage.”
Republican foreign policy leaders in Congress have yet to weigh in on the proposal, but some
Democrats have come out against it — including Senate Foreign Relations ranking member
Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) who told the New York Times
the cuts “would leave our country alone and exposed and allow China and Russia to fill the
vacuum made vacant by this administration.”
https://nypost.com/2025/04/15/us-news/state-department-could-close-dozens-of-embassies-consulates-while-seeking-26b-in-spending-cuts/
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