U.S. President-elect Donald Trump announced on Saturday that he has appointed his former intelligence chief, Richard Grenell, as the presidential envoy for special international missions. In this role, Grenell is expected to assist the incoming administration in addressing some of the toughest foreign policy challenges.
“Ric will work on some of the hottest spots in the world, including Venezuela and North Korea,” Trump said on his social media platform, Truth Social, without providing further details on the responsibilities of the position.
A source from Trump’s transition team told Reuters that Grenell would also focus on tensions in the Balkans.
Grenell responded on the X platform (formerly Twitter):
“Working on behalf of the American people for Donald Trump is the greatest honor of my life. President Trump is someone who solves problems while keeping Americans safe and prosperous. We have a lot of work to do. Let’s get started.”
During Trump’s first term, Grenell served as U.S. Ambassador to Germany, Special Presidential Envoy for negotiations between Serbia and Kosovo, and Acting Director of National Intelligence. He has long been one of Trump’s key foreign policy advisors.
After campaigning intensively for Trump in the November 5 elections, Grenell was a leading contender for the position of Secretary of State, but Trump appointed Senator Marco Rubio instead. Grenell was also mentioned as a possible candidate for Special Envoy for the war in Ukraine, but ultimately, Trump selected retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg for that role.
He was present when Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in September. Grenell has expressed support for a peace deal that would preserve Ukraine’s territory while allowing for “autonomous regions” where Russia could maintain control.
Grenell has also advised against NATO expansion, including Ukraine’s potential membership, saying—like Trump—that the alliance should not expand until current members meet their defense spending targets. NATO members have pledged for years to spend 2% of their GDP on defense, but some countries have yet to meet this goal.
Grenell campaigned intensively for Trump with Arab-American voters in Michigan, where Trump won in a traditionally Democratic electorate, despite having previously banned immigration from several Muslim-majority countries. Grenell organized activities for Trump among Arab-American voters.
Presidents appoint special or presidential envoys to focus on global issues, crises, or specific diplomatic efforts. North Korea and Venezuela are adversaries of the U.S., though reports suggest that Trump is considering direct talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in an effort to minimize the risks of armed conflict.
During his presidential campaign, Trump called Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro a dictator. Maduro said Trump’s re-election marked “a new beginning” for bilateral relations.
In his first term, Trump imposed harsher sanctions on the South American country, particularly targeting its key oil industry. Maduro severed diplomatic ties in 2019.
Reuters reports that in 2020, Grenell secretly met with a representative of Maduro in an attempt to secure the peaceful exit of the Venezuelan leader after his 2018 re-election, which was deemed manipulated by most Western countries, but no agreement was reached.
Republican U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty expressed support for Grenell, saying on the X platform that he would “do a great job tackling some of the world’s toughest challenges.” /VOA/
