The United States is reportedly planning to cut down its diplomatic mission in China by up to 10%, as per a report by the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on Wednesday, as cited by Reuters sources. The deduction will affect American diplomats and locally hired employees in mainland China and Hong Kong, could be announced latest by Friday.
In this unprecedented move, the cuts are anticipated to impact the US embassy in Beijing and consulates in Wuhan, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Shenyang. Meanwhile, there is no clarification whether the affected personnel will be deployed to some other places, layoffs are reportedly expected to take place.
Embassy denies report of layoffs
Two sources of Reuters confirmed that the SCMP report has been rejected by the senior leadership at the US mission in China as they have communicated with the staff regarding it. However, an official statement has not been provided neither by US State Department nor embassy spokesperson related to potential diplomatic reductions.
The reported cuts will align with President Donald Trump‘s broader planning of trimming US government expenditures, a scheme backed by billionaire Elon Musk. Sources of Reuters informed last week that US embassies globally are planning for potential staff reductions.
US-China relationship
The US has one of its largest diplomatic workforce stationed in China, with more than 1,300 employees. The employees include American diplomats and locally hired staff across six buildings spanning a 10-acre complex in Beijing. The Beijing embassy is considered as a significant hub for almost 50 different US federal agencies working in China.
The reported diplomatic staff reduction comes in the middle of strained US-China bilateral relationship and has raised concern about future diplomatic talks.
(With inputs from Reuters)