WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — According to The Washington Post, the senior officials' decision to step down comes as a part of an ongoing mass exodus of foreign service officers who are unwilling to work in the administration of President Donald Trump.
Tillerson conducted several meetings at the State Department's headquarters in Washington, DC, continuing search for his assistants, the newspaper added.
23 January 2017, 22:55 GMT
Shortly before the Tillerson's visit, Under Secretary of State for Management Patrick Kennedy announced unexpectedly that he would be leaving his post on Friday. Following the Kennedy's resignation, three of his top officials — Assistant Secretary of State for Administration Joyce Anne Barr, Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Michele Bond and Ambassador Gentry O. Smith, director of the Office of Foreign Missions — also decided to step down.
On Monday, the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved the nomination of Tillerson.
However, the nomination of the former Exxon Mobil chairman and CEO’s still needs to be approved by the full Senate.
