Douglas L. McElhaney
Encyclopedia
Diplomacy
Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting negotiations between representatives of groups or states...
. He served as the Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina
United States Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina
This is a list of United States ambassadors to Bosnia and Herzegovina.The United States recognized the independence of Bosnia-Herzegovina on April 7, 1992, and announced the establishment of diplomatic relations August 6, 1992. A U.S. Embassy was established on November 10, 1993, on the premises of...
2004–2007.
McElhaney, a career officer of the United States Foreign Service
United States Foreign Service
The United States Foreign Service is a component of the United States federal government under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of approximately 11,500 professionals carrying out the foreign policy of the United States and aiding U.S...
, was sworn in as Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina on August 6, 2004 at the State Department and arrived in Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
on September 14.
Ambassador McElhaney joined the State Department in 1973 and was immediately assigned as Vice Consul to the American Embassy in Lisbon, Portugal. After working in the State Department Operations Center in 1975, he did further graduate work at Stanford University from 1977–78. During the next four years he worked on the Namibia
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...
negotiations that helped bring the southwest African nation to independence, followed by a tour in the U.S. Embassy in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
.
As the Deputy Political Counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, 1987–89, he worked on the Mideast peace negotiations. After an assignment in the U.S. Embassy in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, he returned to Washington to work on European military issues. From 1995–2000, he served as Political Counselor and then as U.S. Deputy Permanent Representative at the U.S. Mission to NATO. He was Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Paris
Embassy of the United States in Paris
The Embassy of the United States in Paris, France, is the United States oldest diplomatic mission. Benjamin Franklin and some of the other Founding Fathers were the earliest United States Ambassadors to France.It is located at 2 avenue Gabriel, on the northwest corner of the Place de la Concorde,...
, often serving as Chargé d'Affaires, before his most recent assignment as U.S. Consul General in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
.
A 31-year veteran of the State Department, Ambassador McElhaney is a member of the American Foreign Service Association
American Foreign Service Association
The American Foreign Service Association is the professional association certified by the United States Department of State, the Commercial Service, Foreign Agricultural Service, and U.S. Agency for International Development to represent members of the United States Foreign Service. AFSA's history...
and has received numerous meritorious and superior honor awards during his career. He graduated with honors with a B.A. from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
and an M.A. from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in international affairs.