Political Bureaus

The political bureaus are the geographically-segmented bureaus of the DOS responsible for foreign policy.

Composition

The political bureaus are directly led by an undersecretary for Political Affairs. They are a career officer of the foreign service, and effectively the highest ranking officer. The position is a presidential appointment subject to Senate approval.

Africa

The bureau of African Affairs (AF) is tasked with the Sub-Saharan Africa world region. The bureau is led by an assistant secretary.

1. Angola

2. Benin

3. Botswana

4. Burkina Faso

5. Burundi

6. Cabo Verde

7. Cameroon

8. Central African Republic

9. Chad

10. Comoros

11. Côte d’Ivoire

12. Democratic Republic of the Congo

13. Djibouti

14. Equatorial Guinea

15. Eritrea

16. Eswatini

17. Ethiopia

18. Gabon

19. The Gambia

20. Ghana

21. Guinea

22. Guinea-Bissau

23. Kenya

24. Lesotho

25. Liberia

26. Madagascar

27. Malawi

28. Mali

29. Mauritania

30. Mauritius

31. Mozambique

32. Namibia

33. Niger

34. Nigeria

35. Republic of the Congo

36. Rwanda

37. Sao Tome and Principe

38. Senegal

39. Seychelles

40. Sierra Leone

41. Somalia

42. South Africa

43. South Sudan

44. Sudan

45. Tanzania

46. Togo

47. Uganda

48. Zambia

49. Zimbabwe

East Asia and Pacific

The bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs (EAP) is tasked with the East Asia and Pacific world regions. The bureau is led by an assistant secretary.

1. Australia

2. Brunei

3. Burma

4. Cambodia

5. China

6. Cook Islands

7. Fiji

8. Indonesia

9. Japan

10. Kiribati

11. Laos

12. Malaysia

13. Marshall Islands

14. Micronesia

15. Mongolia

16. Nauru

17. New Zealand

18. Niue

19. North Korea

20. Palau

21. Papua New Guinea

22. Philippines

23. Samoa

24. Singapore

25. Solomon Islands

26. South Korea

27. Taiwan

28. Thailand

29. Timor-Leste

30. Tonga

31. Tuvalu

32. Vanuatu

33. Vietnam

Europe and Eurasia

The bureau of Europe and Eurasian Affairs (EUR) is tasked with the Europe and Eurasia world region. The bureau is led by an assistant secretary.

1. Albania

2. Andorra

3. Armenia

4. Austria

5. Azerbaijan

6. Belarus

7. Belgium

8. Bosnia and Herzegovina

9. Bulgaria

10. Croatia

11. Cyprus

12. Czechia

13. Denmark

14. Estonia

15. Finland

16. France

17. Georgia

18. Germany

19. Greece

20. Holy See

21. Hungary

22. Iceland

23. Ireland

24. Italy

25. Kosovo

26. Latvia

27. Liechtenstein

28. Lithuania

29. Luxembourg

30. Malta

31. Moldova

32. Monaco

33. Montenegro

34. Netherlands

35. North Macedonia

36. Norway

37. Poland

38. Portugal

39. Romania

40. Russia

41. San Marino

42. Serbia

43. Slovakia

44. Slovenia

45. Spain

46. Sweden

47. Switzerland

48. Turkey

49. Ukraine

50. United Kingdom

Near East

The bureau of Near Eastern Affairs Affairs (NEA) is tasked with the Middle East and Northern Africa world regions. The bureau is led by an assistant secretary.

1. Algeria

2. Bahrain

3. Egypt

4. Iran

5. Iraq

6. Israel

7. Jordan

8. Kuwait

9. Lebanon

10. Libya

11. Morocco

12. Oman

13. Palestinian Territories

14. Qatar

15. Saudi Arabia

16. Syria

17. Tunisia

18. United Arab Emirates

19. Yemen

South and Central Asia

The bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA) is tasked with the South and Central Asia world region. The bureau is led by an assistant secretary.

1. Afghanistan

2. Bangladesh

3. Bhutan

4. India

5. Kazakhstan

6. Kyrgyzstan

7. Maldives

8. Nepal

9. Pakistan

10. Sri Lanka

11. Tajikistan

12. Turkmenistan

13. Uzbekistan

Western Hemisphere

The bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs (WHA) is tasked with all of the western hemisphere. The bureau is led by an assistant secretary.

1. Antigua and Barbuda

2. Argentina

3. The Bahamas

4. Barbados

5. Belize

6. Bolivia

7. Brazil

8. Canada

9. Chile

10. Colombia

11. Costa Rica

12. Cuba

13. Dominica

14. Dominican Republic

15. Ecuador

16. El Salvador

17. Grenada

18. Guatemala

19. Guyana

20. Haiti

21. Honduras

22. Jamaica

23. Mexico

24. Nicaragua

25. Panama

26. Paraguay

27. Peru

28. Saint Kitts and Nevis

29. Saint Lucia

30. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

31. Suriname

32. Trinidad and Tobago

33. Uruguay

34. Venezuela

International Organizations

The bureau of International Organizations (IO) is tasked with all NGOs. The bureau is led by an assistant secretary.

Counterterrorism

The bureau of Counterterrorism and Countering Violent Extremism (CT) is tasked with coordinating various independent agencies around counterterrorism efforts. The bureau is led by a coordinator.

History

The political bureaus were originally overseen by a deputy undersecretary. The office of the undersecretary for political affairs (P) was established in 1959.

In 1969, coordination on military matters was reassigned to a new bureau of Political-Military Affairs.

The office for Combatting Terrorism was created in 1972 following the Munich Olympics. This office was granted authority to coordinate counterterrorism efforts of the DOD, CIA, and FBI in 1986. It was reorganized into the bureau of Counterterrorism in 2012, and again renamed in 2016 to Counterterrorism and Countering Violent Extremism. In 2023, this bureau was placed under the oversight of the undersecretary for Political Affairs, alongside the political bureaus.

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