United States Ambassador to Ethiopia

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Donald Yamamoto, current U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia

Ethiopia was relatively isolated from major movements of world politics until Italian invasions in 1895. In 1870 an Italian company established a colony in northern Ethiopia, which by 1890 became the Italian colony of Eritrea. Conflicts between the two countries resulted in the Battle of Adowa in 1896, in which the Ethiopians surprised the world by defeating the colonial power and remaining independent, under the rule of Menelik II. Italy and Ethiopia signed a provisional treaty of peace on October 26, 1896.

The early twentieth century was marked by the reign of Emperor Haile Selassie I, who undertook the rapid modernization of Ethiopia — interrupted only by the brief Italian occupation (1936–1941).^[1] British and patriot Ethiopian troops liberated the Ethiopian homeland in 1941, which was followed by sovereignty on January 31, 1941 and British recognition of full sovereignty (i.e. without any special British privileges) with the signing of the Anglo-Ethiopian Agreement in December 1944.^[2]

The United States established diplomatic relations with Ethiopia in 1903 and commissioned its first ambassador to Ethiopia, Hoffman Phiip, in 1908. Relations continued uninterrupted until 1980. In July 1980, the U.S. Ambassador to Ethiopia was recalled at the request of the Ethiopian Government, and the U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia and the Ethiopian Embassy in the United States were headed by chargés d’affaires. After the defeat of the Derg regime in 1991 and installation of a new government, the current chargé was commissioned as the new ambassador. The U.S. has had good relations with the Ethiopian government since that time.

1 Ambassadors
2 Notes
3 See also
4 Sources

[edit] Ambassadors

Diplomatic Terms

Career FSO: After 1915, The United States Department of State began classifying ambassadors as career Foreign Service Officers (FSO) 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 to reward political friends.

Appointed: The date that the ambassador took the oath of office—also called “commissioning.” This 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 must be later confirmed 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: For the time being; in the meantime. See ad interim.

Hoffman Philip^[3]
- Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
- Appointed: July 20, 1908
- Presented credentials: July 6, 1909
- Terminated mission: Left post, February 8, 1910
Addison E. Southard – Career FSO^[4]
- Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
- Appointed: October 12, 1927
- Presented credentials: March 1, 1928
- Terminated mission: Left post, October 26, 1934
Cornelius Van H. Engert – Career FSO^[5]
- Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
- Appointed: February 7, 1936
- Presented credentials: April 30, 1936
- Terminated mission: Left post, May 4, 1937
John K. Caldwell – Career FSO^[6]
- Title: Minister Resident/Consul General
- Appointed: April 14, 1943
- Presented credentials: August 31, 1943
- Terminated mission: December 9, 1943
John K. Caldwell – Career FSO^[6]
- Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: October 7, 1943
- Presented credentials: December 9, 1943
- Terminated mission: Left post, August 26, 1945
Felix Cole – Career FSO
- Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: February 20, 1945
- Presented credentials: October 5, 1945
- Terminated mission: Left post, October 8, 1947
George R. Merrell – Career FSO^[7]
- Title: Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: May 15, 1947
- Presented credentials: January 1, 1948
- Terminated mission: May 21, 1949
George R. Merrell – Career FSO^[7]
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: May 21, 1949
- Presented credentials: June 28, 1949
- Terminated mission: Left post, March 17, 1951
J. Rives Childs – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: April 19, 1951
- Presented credentials: May 14, 1951
- Terminated mission: Left post, January 19, 1953
Joseph Simonson – Political appointee
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: July 22, 1953
- Presented credentials: October 6, 1953
- Terminated mission: Left post, May 1, 1957
Don C. Bliss – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: May 20, 1957
- Presented credentials: June 22, 1957
- Terminated mission: Left post, June 4, 1960
Arthur L. Richards – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 24, 1960
- Presented credentials: August 26, 1960
- Terminated mission: Left Ethiopia, November 25, 1962
Edward M. Korry – Political appointee
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: March 9, 1963
- Presented credentials: April 20, 1963
- Terminated mission: Left post, September 22, 1967
William O. Hall – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: September 13, 1967
- Presented credentials: October 27, 1967
- Terminated mission: Left post, May 15, 1971
E. Ross Adair – Political appointee
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: May 11, 1971
- Presented credentials: July 8, 1971
- Terminated mission: Left post, February 12, 1974
Thomas W. McElhiney – Career FSO^[8]
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: February 11, 1974
- Presented credentials:
- Terminated mission:
Arthur W. Hummel, Jr. – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: February 20, 1975
- Presented credentials: April 3, 1975
- Terminated mission: Left post, July 6, 1976
Frederic L. Chapin – Career FSO^[9]
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 27, 1978
- Presented credentials: July 21, 1978
- Terminated mission: Left post, July 29, 1980
Marc Allen Baas – Career FSO^[10]
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 15, 1982
- Presented credentials: June 24, 1992
- Terminated mission: Left post, July 8, 1994
Note: The U.S. ambassador was recalled in July 1980 and a series of chargés maintained the embassy until June 1992. The following officers served as chargés d’affaires: Owen W. Roberts (July 1980–May 1982, David A. Korn (June 1982–July 1985), James Cheek (July 1985–August 1988), Robert G. Houdek (August 1988–June 1991), and Marc A. Baas (June 1991–June 1992). In June 1992 che current chargé, Marc Allen Baas, was commissioned as the new ambassador.
Irvin Hicks – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: May 9, 1994
- Presented credentials: July 22, 1994
- Terminated mission: Left post, June 26, 1996
David H. Shinn – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: June 6, 1996
- Presented credentials: July 2, 1996
- Terminated mission: Left post August 14, 1999
Tibor P. Nagy, Jr. – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: August 9, 1999
- Presented credentials: October 12, 1999
- Terminated mission: Left post July 19, 2002
Aurelia E. Brazeal – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: October 3, 2002
- Presented credentials: November20, 2002
- Terminated mission: Left post, September 2, 2005
Note: Vicki Huddleston served as the Chargé d’Affaires ad interim at the embassy in Addis Ababa until the Donald Yamamoto became the ambassador.
Donald Yamamoto – Career FSO
- Title: Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
- Appointed: November 9, 2006
- Presented Credentials: December 6, 2006
- Terminated mission: —

[edit] Notes

^ Clapham, Christopher, "Ḫaylä Śəllase" in Siegbert von Uhlig, ed., Encyclopaedia Aethiopica: D-Ha (Wiesbaden:Harrassowitz Verlag, 2005), pps.1062-3.
^ Clapham, "Ḫaylä Śəllase", Encyclopaedia Aethiopica, pp.1063.
^ Philip was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on December 9, 1908. He was commissioned to Abyssinia, but did not serve under this recess appointment.
^ Southard was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on December 19, 1927
^ Engert’s mission was terminated when Italian forces occupied Addis Ababa, May 6, 1936.
^ ^a ^b Caldwell’s mission was terminated on October 7, 1943, when the mission was promoted to Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary. Caldwell was recommissioned with the new title on the same date.
^ ^a ^b Merrell’s mission was terminated on May 21, 1949, when the mission was promoted to Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. Merrell was recommissioned with the new title on the same date.
^ McElhiney declined the appointment.
^ Ambassador Chapin was recalled at the request of the Ethiopian government on July 29, 1980.
^ Baas was commissioned as chargé d’affaires in 1982 and promoted to ambassador in 1992.