The acting U.S. ambassador to China, David Rank, has reportedly resigned from his post over President Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate agreement, according to a new report.
CNN reports that several sources familiar with the matter say Rank’s decision was directly tied to Trump’s decision to remove the U.S. from the accord, though his replacement in Beijing has already been approved by the Senate.
"Mr. Rank made a personal decision," a senior State Department official told CNN. "We appreciate his years of dedicated service to the State Department."
Rank has served as the deputy chief of mission at the embassy since January 2016 and had assumed the acting ambassador role until Trump’s choice for ambassador, former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad (R), officially takes over. Rank has served in the foreign service since 1990, working in the Office of Afghanistan Affairs and the Office of Korean Affairs and serving in Taipei, Shanghai, Athens and Mauritius.
Rank becomes the second U.S. ambassador to publicly split with Trump in the past few days. Acting U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom Lewis Lukens publicly praised London Mayor Sadiq Khan for his response to this weekend’s terrorist attack on Sunday after Trump criticized him on Twitter.
“I commend the strong leadership of the Mayor of London as he leads the city forward after this heinous attack,” Lukens wrote.
Earlier Sunday, Trump criticized Khan for his comments following the weekend attack that killed at least seven people and wounded dozens more.
Trump appeared to be referencing Khan’s comments earlier in the day in which he said there was no reason to worry about the increased police presence in London.