The administration of United States President (US) Donald Trump will remove Judy Rising Reinke from her position as ambassador to Montenegro, the Associated Press (AP) reports.
The media outlet reports that the US will withdraw nearly 30 career diplomats from ambassadorial and other senior positions in embassies, as part of an effort to reshape the US diplomatic presence abroad with a cadre considered fully committed to Trump's "America First" agenda.
In Europe, apart from Montenegro, Armenia, North Macedonia and Slovakia are also "affected". The current representatives in Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Gabon, Ivory Coast, Madagascar, Mauritius, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Somalia and Uganda will be withdrawn from their ambassadorial positions in Africa.
In Asia, there will be changes to ambassadorial positions in six countries - Fiji, Laos, Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and Vietnam, in the Middle East in Algeria and Egypt, in South and Central Asia (Nepal and Sri Lanka) and in the Western Hemisphere (Guatemala and Suriname).
The AP writes that heads of mission in at least 29 countries were notified last week that their mandates would end in January, according to two State Department officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal personnel moves.
They all took up their posts during the administration of former President Joe Biden, but survived an initial purge in the early months of Trump's second term, which targeted mostly political appointees. That changed last Wednesday, when they began receiving notices from Washington officials about their imminent departure.
Ambassadors serve at the discretion of the president, although they typically stay in their posts for three to four years. Those affected by the moves will not lose their posts in the diplomatic service, but will be able to return to Washington for other assignments if they choose, officials said.
The State Department declined to comment on specific numbers or ambassadors affected, but defended the changes, calling them “standard process in every administration.” They said the ambassador “is the personal representative of the president and it is the president’s prerogative to ensure that individuals who advance the America First agenda are in those countries.”
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