Secretary of State Marco Rubio has dismissed a U.S. Foreign Service officer after an undercover video showed the diplomat acknowledging that he concealed a romantic relationship with the daughter of a Chinese Communist Party official from U.S. security officials.
The officer, identified as Daniel Choi, was terminated following an internal State Department review launched after footage released by O’Keefe Media Group showed him discussing the relationship and admitting he failed to report it as required under department security rules.
In the undercover recording, Choi said his girlfriend’s father was “straight-up Communist Party” and acknowledged that she “could have been a spy.”
“I defied my government for love,” Choi said in the video.
According to the State Department, Foreign Service officers are required to disclose close and continuing relationships with foreign nationals, particularly when those individuals may have ties to foreign governments, as part of long-standing counterintelligence and security procedures.
A State Department spokesperson said Choi’s dismissal is believed to be the first termination carried out under Executive Order 14211, signed by President Donald Trump earlier this year to strengthen accountability among federal officials responsible for implementing U.S. foreign policy.
The executive order states that officers charged with carrying out American foreign policy must do so under the direction of the president and that failure to faithfully implement administration policy may result in disciplinary action, including termination.
In a statement announcing the decision, the department said Choi admitted on camera that he concealed the relationship despite knowing it should have been reported.
“The Foreign Service Officer admitted to concealing a romantic relationship with a Chinese national, whom he said on camera ‘could have been a spy.’ He also said that her father was ‘straight-up Communist Party,’” the department said.
“The officer was required to report this contact to Department security officials, but said, ‘I defied my government for love.’ Accordingly, the Secretary recommended that the officer be separated for failing to faithfully implement the President’s foreign policy.”
According to the undercover footage, Choi said his girlfriend’s father held a position as either a provincial or national education official within the Chinese Communist Party.
The State Department did not release additional details about its internal investigation. Still, it confirmed that the failure to disclose the relationship violated established security protocols designed to identify potential foreign influence or coercion risks, per the Conservative Brief.
Counterintelligence experts have long warned that foreign intelligence services, including those linked to the Chinese government, have used personal relationships to gather information from government officials.
A former senior intelligence official familiar with State Department security procedures told the outlet that unreported romantic relationships involving officials with potential foreign government ties represent a significant security vulnerability regardless of whether espionage ultimately occurs.
Rubio has made countering Chinese influence a central priority since becoming secretary of state, including tightening foreign contact reporting requirements and increasing security vetting for diplomatic personnel assigned to China-related positions.
