FLASH NEWS
State Department Spokesperson: Yuri Kim has not been fired!
2025-07-13 18:41:01 / POLITIKË
American diplomat Yuri Kim, who served as US Ambassador to Albania, was not fired from her job yesterday, as reported in Albanian media.
Although she was seen applauding colleagues who had their last day of work yesterday, a tradition in some American institutions, she was not part of that contingent of employees.
A State Department spokesperson who spoke to the Albanian-American newspaper "Illyria" in New York stated that Ambassador Kim continues to be part of the American administration.
However, he said that in a few months, she will retire from the diplomatic service “after a distinguished 29-year career.” The spokesman stressed that her departure “is not related to the reorganization of the Department.”
The "reorganization" he mentioned is a profound reform that Secretary of State Marco Rubio is making to the institution, which has led to the elimination of nearly 1,300 jobs in the State Department and diplomatic service around the world.
Critics of President Donald Trump's administration have condemned these cuts, saying they are harming American diplomacy at a time when the challenges are more serious and eminent. Along with the closure of institutions such as USAID, Voice of America, etc., these changes are leaving America at a disadvantage in the face of Russian and Chinese activity in various countries around the world.
However, Secretary of State Marco Rubio says that much of our institutions' international activity was focused on spreading leftist ideologies rather than protecting American interests.
A number of State Department employees came out into the hallway and at the entrance of the institution to applaud some of the employees who finished their work yesterday. One of those applauding their former colleagues was Ambassador Yuri Kim, who has served in Albania for several years. Her appearance captured in several media reports was interpreted in Albania as evidence that she was fired.
It is not the first time that such news has spread in the Albanian media and is enthusiastically received by opposition supporters who blame Ambassador Kim for the events that led to the declaration of persona non grata of the leader of the main opposition in the country, Sali Berisha, and the ensuing split, dividing the Democratic Party in two.
Diplomat Kim was appointed Ambassador to Albania by President Donald Trump during his first term. After her term as ambassador ends in 2023, she has served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State.
She continues to be the Senior Advisor for Effectiveness and Accountability in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, according to a State Department website posted on March 1, 2025. (Illyria)
Footage from Reuters' video report on the State Department layoffs. Yuri Kim, third from right, applauds. Above, the photo used by the State Department for the diplomat's biography and position.
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