Latest news with #State Department
The Standard
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Standard
State Department lays off over 1,300 employees under Trump administration plan
Former Under Secretary of State for civilian security, democracy, and human rights, Uzra Zeya, speaks during a rally outside the headquarters of the State Department, in Washington, Friday, July 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Russia Today
3 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Iran sets terms for resuming nuclear talks
Iran has signaled it is open to resuming dialogue with the US, but only under strict conditions, following Israeli and American strikes on its nuclear facilities, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said. The sixth round of indirect talks, scheduled for June 15 in Oman, was canceled two days earlier after Israel launched airstrikes on Iranian nuclear sites and senior military figures – an escalation Tehran called a declaration of war. The dialogue, revived earlier this year by US President Donald Trump, collapsed in the wake of the attacks. Washington joined the hostilities on June 22, deploying heavy bombers against key nuclear facilities. Trump later argued the sites had been 'completely obliterated,' a claim disputed by multiple media reports. In a written interview with Le Monde published on Thursday, Araghchi condemned the attacks as a violation of international law and said it was the US that 'broke off' negotiations and turned to military action. He added that Tehran remains committed to diplomacy but stressed that any renewed engagement must be based on accountability, mutual respect, and, most importantly, 'guarantees against any attack.' Araghchi said that despite the tensions, diplomatic exchanges are still underway via mediators. The US State Department claimed this week that Trump is committed to peace with Iran. 'Our commitment has been steadfast through all of these conflicts and now is a time for Iran to take advantage of that,' spokesperson Tammy Bruce told reporters. Asked about Trump's statements, Iranian foreign minister replied: 'To claim that a program has been annihilated... is a miscalculation,' adding that Tehran is 'assessing the damage' and may seek compensation. Washington has long demanded that Tehran halt all uranium enrichment – a position Iran considers a deal-breaker. Araghchi reaffirmed that the country's nuclear program remains peaceful, lawful, and under constant IAEA supervision. Iran currently enriches uranium to 60% purity, well above the 3.67% cap set under the now-defunct 2015 nuclear deal, which was rendered null and void after Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from it during his first term. 'The level of enrichment is determined by Iran's needs,' Araghchi said, adding that the current level was meant 'to demonstrate that threat and pressure are not solutions.' He also ruled out any discussion of Iran's ballistic missile program, calling it 'purely defensive and deterrent,' and said it was 'unreasonable to expect Iran to abandon its defensive capabilities' under current conditions.
The National
3 days ago
- Politics
- The National
Trump administration begins mass layoffs at US State Department
The US State Department on Friday began laying off more than 1,300 diplomats and other employees, as part of an effort by President Donald Trump 's administration to slash government spending and shrink the federal workforce. The so-called reductions in force, or RIFs, include 1,107 civil servants and 246 foreign service employees based in the US, according to a State Department notice seen by The National. Including voluntary departures and retirements, nearly 3,000 members of the workforce would leave the department as part of the effort. "The objective from the start was clear: focus resources on policy priority and eliminate redundant functions, empowering our people while increasing accountability," deputy secretary of state Michael Rigas wrote in an email to State Department employees. Mr Rigas said the effort was the "largest reorganisation" effort in the State Department in decades. Until the layoffs, the department had a domestic workforce of about 18,000 people. A State Department employee who did not wish to be named said that farewell emails were pouring in on Friday. Diplomats-in-residence, many of them senior officers, have been let go, in addition to members of the Foreign Service Institute, the employee added. The employee said that they understood that staff at the office of global women's issues had been laid off as well. The layoffs come after the Supreme Court this week ruled in favour of the Trump administration's plans for the mass firings of federal workers. Mr Trump, who took office in January, campaigned on a promise to reduce the size of the federal government, a long-standing Republican goal. The Republican Party as a whole sees a large federal government as a wasteful and bloated bureaucracy. Some far-right Republicans also accuse federal employees of being part of a "deep state" conspiracy working to undermine Mr Trump's agenda. Representative Gregory Meeks, ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, blasted the State Department's layoffs. 'The mass firing of civil service and foreign service employees at the State Department is a reckless and unilateral disarmament of our national security toolbox," he said in a statement. "Republicans claim to put 'America First,' but gutting our diplomatic and development corps does the opposite." Soon after taking office, Mr Trump enlisted the help of billionaire Elon Musk, his ally at the time, to slash federal jobs with the aim of reducing spending and eradicating alleged corruption in the federal government. Under the Department of Government Efficiency, or Doge, thousands of government projects and jobs were cut. The US Agency for International Development was dissolved and folded into the State Department after the vast majority of its projects were cancelled.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
State Department informs workforce of 'targeted reduction' in coming days
The State Department plans to release a letter to all employees Thursday evening informing them that the department is officially moving to implement a 'targeted reduction in domestic workforce.' 'Soon, the Department will be communicating to individuals affected by the reduction in force. First and foremost, we want to thank them for their dedication and service to the United States,' the letter, signed by Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources Michael Rigas, reads. The letter advises that once these notifications have taken place, the department will go into the 'final stage' of reorganization, where the new organizational chart unveiled by Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier in the year will fully take effect. MORE: USAID programs now being run by State Department as agency ends operations Senior State Department officials described the changes as 'the most complicated reorganization in government history,' emphasizing that the cuts were largely made to eliminate Cold War-era redundancies as well as eliminating functions that were 'no longer aligned with the president's foreign policy priorities.' 'At the end of the day, we have to do what's right for the mission,' one senior official said. 'There's a tremendous amount of sort of unnecessary bureaucracy,' the second official asserted. The State Department previously reported to Congress that it would aim to reduce its domestic workforce by around 15% as part of the reorganization. However, the senior officials specified that more than half of that goal would be met through 'voluntary reductions' -- people who elected to take the deferred resignation plan offered through the "Fork in the Road' emails earlier this year. The officials also said the department did not have current plans to reduce its force overseas. 'The secretary wants to take this one step at a time,' one official said. The officials also defended the department's decision to cut some highly trained foreign service officers rather than reassign them.
