The Trump administration is removing dozens of career diplomats from overseas posts. Next month, according to a source familiar with the matter, the latest restructuring will take place at the US State Department.
According to the source, more than two dozen high-ranking diplomats have been notified that they must leave their duties within the next month.
According to the American Foreign Service Association, the union that represents the American foreign service and career diplomats, those affected by the dismissal report were notified by phone call that they were being removed from their positions “abruptly,” without any explanation.
They were ordered to leave their posts by January 15 or 16.
The State Department building in Washington, July 11, 2025.
Hu Yousong/Xinhua via Getty Images
“This method is very irregular,” an AFSA spokesperson told ABC News.
“This is not normal practice. Career diplomats and ambassadors are not typically removed in this way. The lack of transparency and process breaks radically with long-standing norms,” the spokesperson said.
Most of the affected ambassadors serve in U.S. diplomatic posts in Africa, but the removals also affect posts in Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Western Hemisphere.
A senior State Department official described the removal of ambassadors as “a standard process in any administration.”
“An ambassador is a personal representative of the President, and it is the President’s right to ensure that he has people in these countries who will advance the America First agenda,” they said.
The State Department declined to comment on specific numbers or ambassadors affected.
AFSA confirmed that there is no official verified list of retired ambassadors.
According to AFSA, several lists are circulating that appear to come from people inside and outside the department.
POLITICO was the first to report the diplomats’ dismissal.
The dismissal is the Trump administration’s latest move to reshape the State Department to more align with its “America First” priorities. The dismissal comes after more than 1,300 civil servants and more than 240 foreign service officers were laid off earlier this year as part of what the administration said was a major reorganization aimed at increasing efficiency and reducing the size of the government.
It is generally normal for new presidents to replace the political appointment service with ambassadorial functions; However, career diplomats are normally allowed to continue performing their duties.
AFSA criticized the repeal, saying it sends a “chilling signal” to career foreign service officers that their oaths to the Constitution take a backseat to political loyalty.
“Dismissing top diplomats without cause undermines America’s credibility abroad and sends a chilling signal to the professional foreign service: experience and an oath to the Constitution take a backseat to political loyalty. This is not how America leads,” the statement said.
AFSA says the withdrawal represents “a continuing erosion of standards, transparency and professional independence in the Foreign Service.”
“The abrupt and inexplicable withdrawals reflect the same pattern of institutional sabotage and politicization that our survey data shows is already damaging US morale, effectiveness and credibility abroad,” the spokesperson said.
AFSA is working with partners to confirm names one by one through direct contacts.
Luis Martinez and Josh Margolin of ABC News contributed to this report.
