US ambassador to Estonia resigns after President Trump’s EU comments

The U.S. ambassador to Estonia has decided to step down over President Trump’s critical remarks about the European Union.

According to Foreign Policy magazine, which broke the story, veteran diplomat James D. Melville Jr. explained his decision in a private Facebook post.

“A Foreign Service Officer’s DNA is programmed to support policy and we’re schooled right from the start, that if there ever comes a point where one can no longer do so, particularly if one is in a position of leadership, the honorable course is to resign,” Melville wrote. “Having served under six presidents and 11 secretaries of state, I never really thought it would reach that point for me.”

“For the President to say the EU was ‘set up to take advantage of the United States, to attack our piggy bank,’ or that ‘NATO is as bad as NAFTA’ is not only factually wrong but proves to me that it’s time to go,” he added.

Trump has blasted both groups in the past, particularly over trade, causing tensions to rise between the U.S. and many allied nations.

On Friday, the State Department confirmed Melville’s decision, saying in a statement, “Earlier today, the United States’ Ambassador to Estonia, Jim Melville, announced his intent to retire from the Foreign Service effective July 29after 33 years of public service.”

His departure adds to a growing list of ambassadors and senior officials who have left the State Department under the Trump administration.

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