The United States Embassy in Nigeria has announced it will suspend routine updates on its official X (formerly Twitter) account, citing the ongoing government funding impasse in Washington.
In a statement released on Wednesday, October 1, the Embassy said the pause was due to a “lapse in appropriations,” a diplomatic phrase referring to the partial shutdown of the U.S. government after Congress failed to pass a new budget or temporary funding bill.
As a result, many non-essential government operations have scaled back activities.
“Due to the lapse in appropriations, this X account will not be updated regularly until full operations resume, with the exception of urgent safety and security information,” the Embassy noted.
It added that posts would be limited to critical alerts such as security advisories, emergencies, or travel-related warnings for U.S. citizens in Nigeria.
Consular operations functional
Despite the cutback in public communication, the Embassy stressed that consular operations remain functional.
“At this time, scheduled passport and visa services in the United States and at U.S. Embassies and Consulates overseas will continue during the lapse in appropriations as the situation permits,” the statement read.
This means Nigerians applying for visas or other consular services should still be able to attend appointments, although potential delays cannot be ruled out if the funding standoff persists.
The suspension of communications services is not peculiar to Nigeria, as U.S. Embassies worldwide are sharing the same message.
A similar post by the U.S. Embassy to the U.K. read: “We will not update this account until full operations resume, with the exception of urgent safety and security information.”
“At this time, scheduled passport and visa transit services in the United States and at U.S. Embassies and Consulates overseas will continue during the lapse in appropriations as the situation permits.”
Backstory
The US government began shutting down on Wednesday after lawmakers and President Donald Trump failed to break a budget impasse during acrimonious talks that hinged on Democratic demands for health care funding.
- Republicans and Democrats immediately blamed each other for the deadlock that will impact hundreds of thousands of government workers and the millions of Americans who use the services they provide.
- The shutdown, which will stop work at multiple federal departments and agencies, comes as deep partisan divisions in Washington have raised fears over what will be the length and consequences of the halt.
- Trump threatened to punish Democrats and their voters by targeting progressive priorities and forcing mass public sector job cuts during the first stoppage since the one during his previous term.
- Meanwhile, the U.S. government has entered multiple shutdowns in recent decades, often caused by political disagreements in Congress over spending priorities.
