The U.S. Embassy in Nigeria announced on Wednesday that it will suspend regular updates on its social media platforms due to a lapse in U.S. government appropriations, a development linked to the ongoing budget impasse in Washington, D.C.

The Embassy disclosed this in a tweet on Wednesday, stating, “Due to the lapse in appropriations, this account will not be updated regularly until full operations resume, with the exception of urgent safety and security information.”

It also noted that essential consular services, including passport and visa transit processing, will continue both in the United States and at embassies and consulates overseas, “as the situation permits.”

The tweet read, “At this time, scheduled passport and visa transit services in the United States and at U.S. Embassies and Consulates overseas will continue during the lapse in appropriations as the situation permits.

“We will not update this account until full operations resume, with the exception of urgent safety and security information. For information on our services and operating status, visit http://travel.state.gov.”

The announcement comes amid a U.S. government shutdown that began early Wednesday after lawmakers and President Donald Trump failed to reach an agreement on the federal budget.

The impasse centred on Democratic demands for increased healthcare funding, leading to a halt in funding for many government operations.

Both Republicans and Democrats blamed each other for the deadlock, which is expected to affect hundreds of thousands of government workers and millions of Americans who rely on government services.

The shutdown, which will stop work at multiple federal departments and agencies, comes as deep partisan divisions in Washington have raised fears over the length and consequences of the halt.

Trump threatened to punish Democrats and their voters by targeting progressive priorities and forcing mass public sector job cuts during the first stoppage since the one during his previous term.

“So we’d be laying off a lot of people who are going to be very affected. And they’re Democrats; they’re going to be Democrats,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

He said a “lot of good can come down from shutdowns” and suggested he would use the pause to “get rid of a lot of things we didn’t want, and they’d be Democrat things.”

Government operations began grinding to a halt at 12:01 a.m. (0401 GMT) on Wednesday, after a frenetic but ultimately failed bid in the Senate to rubber-stamp a short-term funding resolution already approved by the House of Representatives.

Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer posted a video on social media that showed a clock ticking down to midnight over an image of the US Capitol building.

“The Republican shutdown has just begun because Republicans wouldn’t protect America’s healthcare,” he said. “We are going to keep fighting for the American people.”

The shutdown will not affect vital functions like the Postal Service, the military, and welfare programmes such as Social Security and food stamps.