United States Ambassador to Myanmar

Ambassador of the United States to Burma
Seal of the United States Department of State
Incumbent Derek Mitchell since July 2012
Style	Ambassador
Residence	Rangoon, Burma
Nominator	Barack Obama
Inaugural holder	J. Klahr Huddle as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Formation	October 17, 1947
Website	burma.usembassy.gov

This is a list of Ambassadors of the United States to Burma. In 1989 the military government of Burma changed the name of the nation to Myanmar, but the United States government—and all other Western governments—do not accept the name and still refer to the country as Burma in official usage.

Burma became a province of India in 1886 under the British Raj. The country was occupied by Japan during World War II but after the war, again came under control of Britain. In 1946 Britain began negotiations with the Burmese to establish independence for the nation, and reached a final agreement on January 27, 1947. A transitional government was established and Burma became fully independent on January 4, 1948.

The United States recognized Burma and established the Embassy of the United States, Rangoon on September 19, 1947, with Earl L. Packer as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim.

After 1990 the United States appointed no ambassador to Burma in protest against the policies of the military regime. A chargé d'affaires became the head of mission until 2012.

On January 13, 2012, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that "at the direction of President Obama, we will start the process of exchanging ambassadors with Burma. We will identify a candidate to serve as U.S. Ambassador to represent the United States Government and our broader efforts to strengthen and deepen our ties with both the people and the government." On June 29, 2012, the U.S. Senate confirmed Derek Mitchell as the new U.S. Ambassador to Burma.

Ambassadors

U.S. diplomatic terms

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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.

• J. Klahr Huddle – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: October 17, 1947
  • Presented credentials: March 3, 1948
  • Terminated mission: Relinquished charge November 28, 1949

• David McK. Key – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: March 17, 1950
  • Presented credentials: April 26, 1950
  • Terminated mission: Left post, October 28, 1951

• William J. Sebald – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: April 25, 1952
  • Presented credentials: July 18, 1952
  • Terminated mission: Left post, July 15, 1954

• Joseph C. Satterthwaite – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: April 4, 1955
  • Presented credentials: May 10, 1955
  • Terminated mission: Left post, April 1, 1957

• Walter P. McConaughy – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: May 20, 1957
  • Presented credentials: August 20, 1957
  • Terminated mission: Left post, November 2, 1959

• William P. Snow – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: November 9, 1959
  • Presented credentials: December 1, 1959
  • Terminated mission: Left post, May 4, 1961

• John Scott Everton – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: May 4, 1961
  • Presented credentials: June 10, 1961
  • Terminated mission: Left post, May 21, 1963

• Henry A. Byroade – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: September 10, 1963
  • Presented credentials: October 7, 1963
  • Terminated mission: Left post, June 11, 1968

• Arthur W. Hummel, Jr. – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: September 26, 1968
  • Presented credentials: October 1968
  • Terminated mission: Left post, July 22, 1971

• Edwin W. Martin – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: August 10, 1971
  • Presented credentials: October 1, 1971
  • Terminated mission: Left post, November 20, 1973

• David L. Osborn – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: February 28, 1974
  • Presented credentials: March 22, 1974
  • Terminated mission: Left post, July 25, 1977

• Note: Osborn and subsequent ambassadors were commissioned to the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma.

• Maurice Darrow Bean – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: September 19, 1977
  • Presented credentials: November 8, 1977
  • Terminated mission: Left post, August 10, 1979

• Patricia M. Byrne – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: November 27, 1979
  • Presented credentials: January 14, 1980
  • Terminated mission: Left post, September 14, 1983

• Daniel Anthony O'Donohue – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: November 14, 1983
  • Presented credentials: December 26, 1983
  • Terminated mission: Left post, December 16, 1986

• Burton Levin – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: April 7, 1987
  • Presented credentials: May 26, 1987
  • Terminated mission: Left post, September 30, 1990

• Note: No ambassador was appointed to replace Levin. The U.S. was represented by a succession of chargés d’affaires.

• Derek Mitchell – Career FSO
  • Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
  • Appointed: July 5, 2012
  • Presented credentials: July 6, 2012

Chargés d’Affaires

• Franklin P. Huddle, Jr. (September 1990–September 1994)
• Marilyn Meyers (September 1994–October 1996)
• Kent M. Wiedemann (October 1996–May 1999)
• Priscilla A. Clapp (July 1999–August 2002)
• Carmen Maria Martinez (August 2002–August 2005)
• Shari Villarosa (August 2005–September 2008)
• Larry M. Dinger (September 2008–August 2011)
• Michael Thurston (August 2011–July 2012)

Uncompleted appointments

• Frederick Vreeland was nominated to the ambassadorial post by President Bush in 1990, but the Senate declined to act on the nomination.
• Parker W. Borg was nominated by President Bush on July 22, 1991, but the Senate declined to act on the nomination.
• Michael J. Green was nominated by President Bush in 2008 to fulfill a special envoy position delegated by the Tom Lantos Block Burma JADE Act, but the nomination was not voted on by the end of the Bush Administration.

See also

• Burma – United States relations
• Foreign relations of Burma
• Ambassadors of the United States

References

• United States Department of State: Background notes on Burma
•  This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Department of State (Background Notes).

External links

• United States Department of State: Chiefs of Mission for Burma
• United States Department of State: Burma
• United States Embassy in Rangoon