List of ambassadors of the United States to Armenia
Ambassador of the United States to Armenia | |
---|---|
Միացյալ Նահանգների դեսպանը Հայաստանում | |
Nominator | The President of the United States |
Appointer | The President with Senate advice and consent |
Inaugural holder | Harry J. Gilmore as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary |
Formation | May 12, 1993 |
Website | Ambassador to Armenia |
Armenia declared its independence from the Soviet Union on August 23, 1990,[1] having previously been the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic, one of the constituent republics of the USSR since 1936, and part of the Transcaucasian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic since 1920. In the wake of the August Coup (1991), a referendum was held on the question of secession. Following an overwhelming vote in favor, full independence was declared on September 21, 1991. However, widespread recognition did not occur until the formal dissolution of the Soviet Union on December 25, 1991. The United States recognized Armenia on December 25, 1991.[2]
The embassy at Yerevan was opened February 3, 1992, with Steven Mann as Chargé d'affaires ad interim.
The U.S. ambassadorial post to Armenia became vacant on May 24, 2006, when the then-current ambassador, John Marshall Evans, was recalled by the Bush administration, purportedly over remarks by Evans concerning the Armenian genocide.[3] On May 23, 2006, and again on January 9, 2007, President Bush nominated Richard E. Hoagland to be the new ambassador, but the nomination was delayed due to a dispute with respect to the Armenian genocide.[4][5] Rudolf V. Perina, the chargé d'affaires ad interim,[6] served as the chief of the mission until August 1, 2008, when Marie L. Yovanovitch held the ambassadorship.[7] From June to October 2011, Bruce Donahue served as chargé d’affaires. After Mr. Donahue, John A. Heffern was the ambassador from October 2011 to December 2014.[8] Thereafter, Richard M. Mills, Jr. held the ambassadorship from February 2015 to October 2018,[9] and from October 2018 to March 2019, Rafik Mansour served as chargé d’affaires. The ambassador is currently Lynne M. Tracy.[10]
Ambassadors[]
U.S. diplomatic terms
After 1915, The United States Department of State began classifying ambassadors as career Foreign Service Officers (FSOs) for those who have served in the Foreign Service for a specified amount of time.
Political appointee
A person who is not a career foreign service officer, but is appointed by the president (often as a reward to political friends).
Appointed
The date that the ambassador took the oath of office; also known as “commissioning”. It follows confirmation of a presidential appointment by the Senate, or a Congressional recess appointment by the president. In the case of a recess appointment, the ambassador requires subsequent confirmation by the Senate to remain in office.
Presented credentials
The date that the ambassador presented his letter of credence to the head of state or appropriate authority of the receiving nation. At this time the ambassador officially becomes the representative of his country. This would normally occur a short time after the ambassador’s arrival on station. The host nation may reject the ambassador by not receiving the ambassador’s letter, but this occurs only rarely.
Terminated mission
Usually the date that the ambassador left the country. In some cases a letter of recall is presented, ending the ambassador’s commission, either as a means of diplomatic protest or because the diplomat is being reassigned elsewhere and replaced by another envoy.
Chargé d'affaires
The person in charge of the business of the embassy when there is no ambassador commissioned to the host country.
Ad interim
Latin phrase meaning "for the time being", "in the meantime".
Name | Appointed | Presented Credentials | Terminated Mission | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Harry J. Gilmore[11] – Career FSO | May 12, 1993 | May 31, 1993 | Left post, July 11, 1995 | |
Peter Tomsen – Career FSO | June 27, 1995 | September 6, 1995 | September 6, 1998 | |
Michael Craig Lemmon – Career FSO | June 29, 1998 | September 21, 1998 | October 1, 2001 | |
John Malcolm Ordway – Career FSO | November 5, 2001 | November 23, 2001 | July 31, 2004 | |
John Marshall Evans – Career FSO | June 30, 2004 | September 4, 2004 | Left post, September 10, 2006[3] | |
Rudolf V. Perina[6] | September 10, 2006 | August 1, 2008 | Chargé d'affaires a.i. | |
Marie L. Yovanovitch[7] – Career FSO | August 4, 2008 | September 22, 2008 | June 9, 2011 | |
– Career FSO | June 9, 2011 | October 6, 2011 | Chargé d'affaires a.i. | |
John A. Heffern[12] – Career FSO | September 29, 2011 | October 17, 2011[13] | December 22, 2014 | |
Richard M. Mills, Jr. – Career FSO | January 2, 2015 | February 15, 2015 | October 17, 2018[9] | |
Rafik Mansour – Career FSO | October 17, 2018 | March 1, 2019 | Chargé d'affaires a.i. | |
Lynne M. Tracy – Career FSO[14] | February 19, 2019[10] | March 1, 2019[15] | Incumbent |
The U.S. Ambassador to Armenia holds the title Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.
See also[]
- Embassy of Armenia, Washington, D.C.
- Embassy of the United States, Yerevan
- Armenia – United States relations
- Foreign relations of Armenia
- Ambassadors from the United States
Notes[]
- ^ "Armenia Independence". The Government of Armenia. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
- ^ "U.S. Department of State Office of the Historian". U. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
- ^ a b Emil Danielyan (May 24, 2006). "U.S. Envoy to Armenia Recalled". ArmeniaLiberty.org. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ Yvonne Abraham, Globe Staff (August 30, 2006). "Armenians try to stall appointment of US envoy". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ "Genocide Issue Blocks Naming Of U.S. Ambassador To Armenia". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. September 13, 2006. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ a b United States Embassy in Yerevan. "Embassy Leadership". United States Department of State: U.S. Embassy in Yerevan. Archived from the original on 2007-11-03. Retrieved 2007-08-03.
- ^ a b "United States Embassy in Yerevan: The Ambassador". Archived from the original on 2009-03-22. Retrieved 2007-08-04.
- ^ "United States Embassy in Yerevan: The Ambassador". Archived from the original on 2012-04-21. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
- ^ a b Mills, Richard M. (October 9, 2018). "Farewell Speech As Prepared Ambassador Richard M. Mills". am.usembassy.gov. Archived from the original on December 11, 2018. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
- ^ a b "U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Lynne Tracy". am.usembassy.gov. Retrieved April 6, 2019.
- ^ Gilmore was nominated for the second time by President Clinton on April 2, 1993. An earlier nomination of August 10, 1992 was not acted upon by the Senate.
- ^ "United States Embassy in Yerevan: The Ambassador". Archived from the original on 2012-04-21. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
- ^ Ambassador Heffern Presents Copies of Credentials to Foreign Minister Nalbandian
- ^ "U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Lynne Tracy". web.archive.org. 2021-11-07. Retrieved 2021-11-07.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Foreign Minister of Armenia Zohrab Mnatsakanyan met with Lynne M. Tracy, newly appointed Ambassador of the United States". www.mfa.am. Retrieved April 6, 2019.
References[]
- United States Department of State: Background notes on Armenia
- This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Department of State website https://www.state.gov/countries-areas/. (U.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets)
External links[]
- Lists of ambassadors of the United States
- Ambassadors of the United States to Armenia
- Lists of ambassadors to Armenia
- Armenia–United States relations