Brookings Institution: A guide for Secretary Tillerson: Let State focus on diplomacy, USAID be accountable for assistance
George Ingram, a Brookings senior fellow for global economy and development, discusses recent rumors of restructuring involving the U.S. Department of State and USAID, writing, “Any foreign affairs restructuring must be undertaken carefully and strategically, guided by an understanding that development and diplomacy are distinct disciplines with distinct expertise and with distinct but interlocking objectives. Both are required to achieve our national interest. They need to inform and coordinate with the other, and each needs to be allowed to focus on its primary mandate.” Ingram describes the differences between the agencies, concluding, “It is time for the Department of State to be allowed to focus on its core function of diplomacy and USAID to be held accountable in an open and transparent way for the management of development programs” (4/24).