US Ambassador in Colombo Among 30 To Be Recalled as Trump Reshapes Diplomacy

COLOMBO (News 1st); The United States is reportedly recalling its ambassador in Sri Lanka along with nearly 30 other career diplomats from ambassadorial and senior embassy posts worldwide, as the Trump administration moves to realign America’s diplomatic presence with its “America First” priorities, according to multiple international reports.

The current US Ambassador to Sri Lanka is  Julie Chung, and she has been in the country since February 2022.

The sweeping shake-up, detailed in the latest internal State Department communications, will end the tenures of chiefs of mission in at least 29 countries starting January.

All affected diplomats were appointed during the Biden administration and had survived an initial purge in the early months of Trump’s second term that primarily targeted political appointees. That changed last week when notices from Washington began landing in inboxes across the globe.

Ambassadors serve at the pleasure of the president, typically for three to four years.

Those recalled will not lose their Foreign Service status but will return to Washington for reassignment.

Africa bears the brunt of the reshuffle, with 13 countries affected, including Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, and Uganda. The Asia-Pacific region follows with six changes, including Fiji, Laos, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

Europe sees four ambassadors recalled, while two each in the Middle East (Algeria and Egypt), South Asia (Nepal and Sri Lanka), and the Western Hemisphere (Guatemala and Suriname) are also impacted.