...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...'s delegation to the United States, an EU official has confirmed to DW. The demotion happened at the end of last year without notice.
The unannounced move by the US State Department, which has not previously been reported, downgraded the EU delegation's diplomatic status in Washington from member state to international organization.
"We don't exactly know when they did it, because they conveniently forgot to notify us," an EU official who is familiar with the matter told DW in an interview.
| It sounds like someone at State is being passive-aggressive about things. Those people don’t forget. |
After the delegation noticed that the EU's Washington ambassador had not been invited to certain events late last year, officials organizing the state funeral for President George H.W. Bush provided final confirmation to EU diplomats that the status of the representation had in fact been downgraded. Diplomats believe the downgrade must have been implemented in late October or early November.
After discovering the downgrade, EU diplomats in Washington reached out to the State Department, which is responsible for diplomatic affairs, for clarification. "They have told us that they forgot to notify us and that this is a decision they have taken because that is apparently what the chief of protocol thinks is the proper thing to do," the person said.
The EU official said the bloc ambassador's status in Washington was upgraded to the level of a nation state ambassador in September 2016, after a lengthy and intensive process by the State Department under former President Barack Obama
Ready to Rule from Day One...
| So not a long-standing tradition, merely another of President Obama’s little poop bombs for his successor. Such a lovely man. |
Asked for comment, the State Department did not respond on the issue, citing limited operations due to the government shutdown. "Due to the lapse in appropriations, the Press Office will be operating on a reduced status. Communications with the media will be limited to events and issues involving the safety of human life or the protection of property, or those determined to be essential to national security," the State Department said in an email.