US Secretary of State Colin Powell has resigned and the White
House is due to make announcement about this matter on Monday,
government officials said.
"The secretary announced to his staff this morning that he had
submitted his resignation on Friday," said a State Department
official, adding that Powell would stay on "until such a time as a
replacement is named."
Powell, 67, becomes the latest high-level member of President
George W. Bush's cabinet to announce plans to leave following the
election.
Powell was often seen representing more moderate views on
foreign policy in the Bush administration.
Powell is expected to go about his usual schedule, a senior
administration official said. Powell was scheduled to meet later
Monday with Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom and was to
attend a meeting of Asian officials in Chile Wednesday and a
multinational conference on Iraq next week.
President Bush has chosen Condoleezza Rice, national security
adviser, to be Powell's successor, a senior official said
Monday.
The official announcement of the appointment will be made on
Tuesday, said the official who asked not to be identified.
Stephen Hadley, deputy national security adviser, will succeed
Rice in her current post.
Following the report of the resignation of Powell, the White
House said that it will announce the resignations of three other
members of President Bush's Cabinet on Monday.
Agriculture Secretary Ann Venneman, Education Secretary Rod
Paige and Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham have all submitted their
resignations, a senior administration official says.
White House spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters that the
officials would not necessarily be leaving immediately and that
their replacements would not be announced on Monday.
Together with the resignations earlier this month of Commerce
Secretary Don Evans and Attorney General John Ashcroft, six of
Bush's 15 Cabinet members will not be part of Bush's second term,
which will begin with his inauguration Jan. 20.
(Xinhua News Agency November 16, 2004)
