Agency Operations — 2026-05-10

State Department Eliminates Two INR Intelligence Offices Including Foreign Intelligence Sharing

The State Department eliminated two offices within its Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR), according to a person inside the unit who spoke to journalist Sasha Ingber on condition of anonymity. The first, Analytic Outreach, ran educational and training programs drawing speakers from other agencies, embassies, and foreign governments; its staff anticipated the cuts. The second, the Intelligence Policy and Information Sharing Center, coordinated intelligence sharing with foreign governments; its staff were reportedly caught off-guard, and other intelligence agencies subsequently raised concerns directly with Amb. Donald Blome, INR's Acting Assistant Secretary. A State Department spokesperson declined to provide office-level personnel figures, citing Secretary Rubio's stated priority of "results-driven diplomacy" led by overseas posts and regional bureaus.

Analysis
The closure of the Intelligence Policy and Information Sharing Center leaves foreign-sharing coordination without a dedicated hub or publicly identified replacement; other IC components have escalated this gap to Amb. Blome, confirming the disruption extends into interagency relationships. Per Ingber's single-source reporting, that pushback represents a constraint the Analytic Outreach closure did not generate. The restructuring may instead reflect deliberate design to embed coordination within regional bureaus rather than reduce capacity, though no such mechanism has surfaced publicly. Rubio's "results-driven diplomacy" framing provides a basis for further consolidation, but the breadth of interagency concern makes at least one additional INR office closure by end of FY2026 genuinely uncertain.

2 sources

Two Intelligence Offices Eliminated at the State Department - HSToday
Two Intelligence Offices Eliminated at the State Department - Sasha Ingber (Substack)