China and India have emerged as the big winners — and Russia and Germany as the top losers — in the first round of a broad restructuring of U.S. diplomatic posts ordered by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
Rice announced plans last month to shift hundreds of Foreign Service positions from Europe and other developed countries to more challenging assignments in Asia, the Middle East and elsewhere as part of an increased U.S. focus on battling terrorism and bolstering security in threatened regions. But the secretary and her aides released few details at the time.