The Under Secretary’s office provides policy direction in the areas of nonproliferation, arms control, regional security and defense relations, and export control policy. The office is heavily involved in negotiations, ratifications, and implementations of agreements on strategic, non-conventional and conventional forces. The office is also involved in policy regarding U.S. security commitments worldwide as well as the use of U.S. military forces in unilateral or international peacemaking roles. Bureaus reporting to T include: Arms Control, Verification and Compliance (AVC); International Security and Nonproliferation (ISN); and Political-Military Affairs (PM).

The Policy Planning Staff (S/P) serves as a source of independent policy analysis and advice for the Secretary of State. S/P’s mission is to take a longer-term, strategic view of global trends and frame recommendations for the Secretary of State to advance U.S. interests and American values. Some of the main tasks of this office include undertaking broad analytical studies of regional and functional issues. This office also takes the lead on certain issues as tasked by the Secretary of State and engages functional and regional bureaus within the Department and relevant government agencies to ensure coordination and integration of policy with longer-term objectives. They hold policy planning talks with major allies and act as liaison to the non-governmental, think-tank and academic communities. The policies of the Department of State are articulated through members of staff from this office.

The Office of the Chief of Protocol for the Office of the Secretary provides the President and the Secretary of State with advice on fulfilling the government’s obligations relating to national and international protocol. They are responsible for planning, arranging, and executing programs for visiting chiefs-of-state and heads of government, foreign ministers, and other high-level officials. They coordinate with the White House on the presentation of credentials of foreign ambassadors to the President and accredit foreign ambassadors and other diplomatic and consular officers. The office plans and executes arrangements for official functions hosted by the Secretary of State.

PRM develops and implements U.S. policies on international population, refugee and migration matters. The office advances U.S. humanitarian principles by providing assistance to victims of persecution and civil strife. PRM also administers the U.S. refugee admissions program that processes and resettles refugees in the United States.

• Office of the Comptroller (PRM/C): responsible for the overall financial management worldwide of the bureau’s program appropriations for migration, refugee assistance, protection and admissions activities, including contributions and other funding arrangements with United Nations and other international organizations and in the preparation and execution of grants and cooperative agreements with U.S. and foreign nonprofit voluntary agencies and on behalf of other federal agencies.
• Office of Policy and Resource Planning (PRM/PRP): develops and ensures consistent implementation of policy on international refugee, migration, and other humanitarian issues, including coordination with other U.S. Government agencies.
• Office of Multilateral Coordination and External Relations (PRM/MCE): plans, formulates, and directs the implementation of U.S. policy positions and strategies that address the full range of refugee, migration and other humanitarian issues in the UN system and in other multilateral organizations including the UNHCR, International Committee for the Red Cross, and International Organization for Migration. The office develops and implements bureau initiatives on strategic global priority issues including refugee women, refugee children, gender-based violence and broader protection issues as they relate to the multilateral system.
• Office of Refugee Admissions (PRM/A): formulates refugee admissions policy and programs for the U.S. Government, manages the U.S. refugee admissions program, including processing abroad and domestic initial reception and placement, and establishes program policies and priorities and recommends annual regional ceilings for authorization by the President in consultation with the Congress.
• Office of Population and International Migration (PRM/PIM): directs State’s international population and migration policy formulation and implementation in order to further the Department’s goal of promoting healthy and educated populations and supporting orderly and humane migration. They represent the United States on the governing bodies of relevant international and multilateral organizations such as the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and the UN Commission on Population and Development (UNCPD).
• Offices of Refugee Assistance: The Offices of Refugee Assistance are broken up based on respective geographical areas.
  • Office of Assistance for Africa (PRM/AFR): is responsible for all countries located on the continent of Africa.
  • Office of Assistance for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas (PRM/ECA): is responsible for the countries located in Europe, Central Asia, and the Americas.
  • Office of Assistance for Asia and Near East (PRM/ANE): is responsible for the countries in Asia and the Pacific as well as the Near East (to include the Middle East); it also coordinates U.S. policy and program issues related to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

The Under Secretary for Political Affairs is the Department’s third-ranking official. The incumbent serves as the day-to-day manager of overall regional and bilateral policy issues, and oversees the bureaus of Africa (AF), East Asia and the Pacific (EAP), Europe and Eurasia (EUR), the Near East (NEA), South and Central Asia (SCA), the Western Hemisphere (WHA), and International Organizations (IO).

The Office of Medical Services’ mission is to safeguard and promote the health and well-being of America’s diplomatic community. This is accomplished via a central staff in Washington, D.C., and a cadre of doctors, physician assistants, nurses, and technicians assigned to select missions abroad.

The Office of the Under Secretary for Management oversees the activities of 10 bureaus and offices that are responsible for management improvement initiatives; security; the Department’s information technology infrastructure; support services for domestic and overseas operations; consular affairs; and personnel matters, including recruitment, career development, training, medical services, and retirement programs. Bureaus reporting to M include: Administration (A); Consular Affairs (CA); Diplomatic Security (DS); the Foreign Service Institute (FSI); Human Resources (HR); Information Resources Management (IRM); and Overseas Buildings Operations (OBO).