The U.S. State Department is planning to remove or integrate special envoy positions at the department, including the position of special envoy for the six-party talks dealing with North Korea.
 
According to CNN on Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in a letter written to Senator Bob Corker who heads the foreign relations committee that he believes “the department will be able to better execute its mission by integrating certain envoys and special representative offices within the regional and functional bureaus.”
 
CNN said that the post of special envoy for the six-way nuclear talks will be eliminated as the talks have failed to resume since 2008.
 
The report said that “functions and staff of the special envoy for North Korean human rights issues would now fall under the office of the under secretary for civilian security, democracy and human rights, who will now also assume that title.”
 
Tillerson is also mulling eliminating or downgrading the representative for climate change and special envoys for Syria, Sudan and South Sudan, and the Arctic.

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