United States Ambassador to Lithuania

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Ambassador of the United States to Lithuania
Seal of the United States Department of State.svg
Seal of the United States Department of State
Incumbent
Deborah A. McCarthy
since February 19, 2013
Nominator Barack Obama
Inaugural holder Frederick W.B. Coleman
as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
Formation September 20, 1922
Website U.S. Embassy - Vilnius

This is a list of Ambassadors of the United States to Lithuania.

The United States first established diplomatic relations with the Baltic states (Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia) in 1922. One ambassador, resident in Riga, Latvia, was appointed to all three nations. Relations with the three nations were broken after the Soviet invasion of the republics in 1940 at the beginning of World War II. The United States never recognized the legitimacy of the Soviet occupation of the Baltic states, nor the legitimacy of the governments of those states under Soviet occupation. Hence, diplomatic relations were not resumed until 1992 after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The U.S. Embassy in Lithuania is located in Vilnius.

Ambassadors

U.S. diplomatic terms

Career FSO
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.

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. See chargé d'affaires.

Ad interim
Latin phrase meaning "for the time being", "in the meantime". See ad interim.
  • Name: Frederick W.B. Coleman[1] – Political appointee
    • Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: September 20, 1922
    • Presented credentials: December 5, 1922
    • Terminated mission: Left Riga October 20, 1931

Note: During Coleman’s tenure as non-resident Minister, the legation in Kovno (later Kaunas) was established on May 31, 1930, with Hugh S. Fullerton as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim.

  • Name: Robert Peet Skinner[1][2] – Career FSO
    • Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: September 23, 1931
    • Presented credentials: February 13, 1932
    • Terminated mission: Left post April 29, 1933
  • Name: John Van Antwerp MacMurray[1][3] – Career FSO
    • Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: August 28, 1933
    • Presented credentials: December 20, 1933
    • Terminated mission: Left post February 12, 1936
  • Name: Arthur Bliss Lane[1] – Career FSO
    • Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: January 24, 1936
    • Presented credentials: June 24, 1936
    • Terminated mission: Left post September 16, 1937
  • Owen J.C. Norem – Political appointee
    • Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: August 23, 1937
    • Presented credentials: November 26, 1937
    • Terminated mission: June 15, 1940

Note: Soviet forces occupied Kaunas on June 15, 1940, which effectively ended the U.S. diplomatic presence in Lithuania. Ambassador Norem departed Kaunas on July 30, 1940.

Note: Bernard Gufler was serving as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim when all U.S. diplomatic officials were withdrawn and the legation in Kaunas was officially closed on September 5, 1940.

Note: The United States resumed diplomatic relations with Lithuania on September 2, 1991. Embassy Vilnius was established October 2, 1991 with Darryl N. Johnson as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim pending his appointment as ambassador.

  • Darryl Norman Johnson – Career FSO
    • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: March 23, 1992
    • Presented credentials: April 14, 1992
    • Terminated mission: Left post May 23, 1994
  • James W. Swihart – Career FSO
    • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: August 26, 1994
    • Presented credentials: September 26, 1994
    • Terminated mission: Left post July 16, 1997
  • Keith C. Smith – Career FSO
    • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: August 1, 1997
    • Presented credentials: September 9, 1997
    • Terminated mission: Left post July 29, 2000
  • John F. Tefft – Career FSO
    • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: June 14, 2000
    • Presented credentials: August 30, 2000
    • Terminated mission: Left post May 10, 2003
  • Stephen D. Mull – Career FSO
    • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: April 16, 2003
    • Presented credentials: August 26, 2003
    • Terminated mission: Left post June 16, 2006
  • John A. Cloud, Jr. – Career FSO
    • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: May 30, 2006
    • Presented credentials: August 17, 2006
    • Terminated mission: January 20, 2009
  • Anne E. Derse - Career FSO
    • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: September 28, 2009
    • Presented credentials: October 14, 2009
    • Terminated mission: July 1, 2012[4]
  • Deborah A. McCarthy[5]
    • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
    • Appointed: January 7, 2013
    • Presented credentials: February 19, 2013
    • Terminated mission: Incumbent

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 The ambassador was simultaneously accredited to Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, while resident in Riga, Latvia.
  2. ↑ Skinner was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on December 17, 1931.
  3. ↑ MacMurray was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on January 15, 1934.
  4. ↑ US Department of State, Office of the Historian-Anne E. Derse (1954–)
  5. ↑ US Department of State, Office of the Historian-Deborah Ann McCarthy (1955–)

See also

References

External links

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