Robert Ford, the U.S. ambassador to Syria, is expected to leave his functions in the near future.

Mr. Ford, former deputy to John Negroponte in Baghdad, had learned from him the method of destabilizing a state, as his boss had done in Nicaragua in the 1980’s. He then applied this recipe to Syria: first by corrupting officials of the Syrian secret services to smuggle in weapons and build tunnels, then by filtering jihadists into the country to foment an "Arab Spring." Called back to Washington in October 2011, he is currently based in Turkey.

The State Department announced that the diplomat’s term in office concludes late June and that his departure is not related to a change in policy.