Noem leaves envoy role but continues Shield of the Americas work

Kristi Noem’s designation as President Donald Trump’s special envoy for the Shield of the Americas expired in September, and she is now serving as a senior adviser to Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau while continuing work on the same portfolio, the State Department said. The department has not given a reason for the change. A State Department official said Noem was no longer in the envoy role and remained involved in efforts to coordinate security cooperation across the Western Hemisphere. Her new advisory position keeps her working on the Shield of the Americas initiative, which brings together the United States and Caribbean and Latin American countries for cooperation on economic matters, anticartel enforcement and other issues. The official said the envoy designation expired shortly before the United Nations General Assembly in September. Noem took part in meetings with regional leaders on the sidelines of the gathering, according to reporting on her activities. She also met Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa on September 22, after the designation had expired; Ecuador’s government continued to refer to her as special envoy, according to one account. Noem’s move...