United States Ambassador to Belarus
Encyclopedia
The United States Ambassador to Belarus is the official representative of the President of the United States to the head of state
of Belarus
.
Until 1991 the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic had been a constituent SSR
of the Soviet Union
. Upon the breakup of the USSR
, the Supreme Soviet of Belarus
declared itself independent of the Soviet Union on August 25, 1991 and renamed itself the Republic of Belarus on September 19, 1991. The United States recognized
Belarus December 26, 1991. An embassy was established in the capital, Minsk
, on January 31, 1992, with John Ford as Chargé d’Affaires ad interim. Relations between the United States and Belarus have been continuous since that time.
The U.S. Embassy in Belarus is located in Minsk
. As of March 12, 2008, when Ambassador Karen Stewart was formally recalled for consultations, there has been no U.S. Ambassador in Minsk. All but five U.S. diplomats were declared persona non grata
on April 30, 2008.
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
of Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
.
Until 1991 the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic had been a constituent SSR
Republics of the Soviet Union
The Republics of the Soviet Union or the Union Republics of the Soviet Union were ethnically-based administrative units that were subordinated directly to the Government of the Soviet Union...
of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Upon the breakup of the USSR
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
, the Supreme Soviet of Belarus
Supreme Soviet of Belarus
The Supreme Soviet of Belarus was the immediate continuation of the Supreme Soviet of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic , which it its turn was the successor of the Central Executive Committee of Byelorussian SSR , and all of them were the highest organs of state power in Belarus during...
declared itself independent of the Soviet Union on August 25, 1991 and renamed itself the Republic of Belarus on September 19, 1991. The United States recognized
Diplomatic recognition
Diplomatic recognition in international law is a unilateral political act with domestic and international legal consequences, whereby a state acknowledges an act or status of another state or government in control of a state...
Belarus December 26, 1991. An embassy was established in the capital, Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
, on January 31, 1992, with John Ford as Chargé d’Affaires ad interim. Relations between the United States and Belarus have been continuous since that time.
The U.S. Embassy in Belarus is located in Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
. As of March 12, 2008, when Ambassador Karen Stewart was formally recalled for consultations, there has been no U.S. Ambassador in Minsk. All but five U.S. diplomats were declared persona non grata
Persona non grata
Persona non grata , literally meaning "an unwelcome person", is a legal term used in diplomacy that indicates a proscription against a person entering the country...
on April 30, 2008.
Ambassadors
- David Heywood Swartz – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: August 11, 1992
- Presented credentials: September 9, 1992
- Terminated mission: Left post January 21, 1994
- Kenneth Spencer Yalowitz – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: September 29, 1994
- Presented credentials: November 7, 1994
- Terminated mission: Left post July 8, 1997
- Daniel V. SpeckhardDaniel V. SpeckhardDaniel V. Speckhard is a United States diplomat who is formerly the United States Ambassador to Greece.-Early life and education:Born in Clintonville, Wisconsin, Speckhard received a Bachelors Degree from the University of Wisconsin–Madison as well as a Masters Degree in Public Policy and...
– Career FSO- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: August 1, 1997
- Presented credentials: September 18, 1997
- Terminated mission: Left post August 5, 2000
- Michael G. Kozak – Career Civil Service (non-FSO)
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: September 15, 2000
- Presented credentials: February 22, 2001
- Terminated mission: Left post August 8, 2003
- George A. KrolGeorge A. KrolGeorge Albert Krol is a United States foreign service officer and career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Minister-Counselor. As of June 2011, he is the U.S. Ambassador to Uzbekistan...
– Career FSO- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: July 1, 2003
- Presented credentials: October 22, 2003
- Terminated mission: Left post July 24, 2006
- Karen B. Stewart – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: August 14, 2006
- Presented credentials: October 24, 2006
- Terminated mission: Left post March 12, 2008
- Jonathan M. Moore – Career FSO
- Title: Chargé d'Affaires ad interim
- Appointed: March 12, 2008
- Presented credentials: —
- Terminated mission: Left post July 7, 2009
- Michael Scanlan – Career FSO
- Title: Chargé d'Affaires ad interim
- Appointed: July 7, 2009
- Presented credentials: —
- Terminated mission: Incumbent
See also
- Belarus – United States relations
- Foreign relations of BelarusForeign relations of BelarusThe Byelorussian SSR was one of only two Soviet republics to be separate members of the United Nations . Both republics and the Soviet Union joined the UN when the organization was founded in 1945.-Prior to 2001:...
- Ambassadors of the United States