Dayton S. Mak

Dayton S. Mak
United States Ambassador to Kuwait
In office 1961–1963
President	John F. Kennedy
Preceded by	n/a
Succeeded by	Parker T. Hart
Personal details
Born	(1917-07-10) July 10, 1917 Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Nationality	American
Spouse(s)	Julie Mak
Children	Holly Mak
Residence	Washington DC
Alma mater	University of Arizona, University of Pennsylvania, Middle East Institute, Naval War College
Profession	Diplomat
Awards	Purple Hearts, Bronze Star

U.S. Near Eastern Affairs Diplomats

Loy W. Henderson (1922–1960) Charles W. Yost (1930–1971) Dayton S. Mak (1946–1970) Hermann Eilts (1947–1979) William Stoltzfus (1949–1976) Andrew Killgore (1949–1980) Richard Bordeaux Parker (1949–1981) William L. Eagleton (1949–1988) Robert O. Waring (194?–1976) Clifford J. "Pat" Quinlan (1950–1980) Talcott Williams Seelye (1950–1981) Joseph J. Sisco (1951–1976) Alfred Atherton (1954–1984) Nicholas A. Veliotes (1955–1986) Richard W. Murphy (1955–1989) Joseph W. Twinam (195?–1985) Robert Pelletreau (1962–1996) W. Nathaniel Howell (1965–1992) Edward Djerejian (1966–1994) Hume Horan (1966–1998) April Glaspie (1966–2002) Wat T. Cluverius IV (1967–?) Edward S. Walker, Jr. (1967–2001) Edward Gnehm (1969–2003) Ronald E. Neumann (1970–2007) Ryan Crocker (1972–present) Harold H. Saunders (1974–1981) Barbara Bodine (1975–present) Mary Ann Casey (1976-1994) David Welch (1977–2008) Francis J. Ricciardone, Jr. (1978–present) Daniel C. Kurtzer (1981–2006) William Joseph Burns (1982–present) Zalmay Khalilzad (1984–present) Dennis Ross (1989–1992) Martin Indyk (1995–2001) James Steinberg (2009–present)

Dayton S. Mak (born July 10, 1917) is a former U.S. diplomat who served posts in England, Libya, Lebanon, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Germany. He was the first U.S. ambassador of Kuwait.^[1] Mak was also former Director of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, for Near East South Asia Affairs.

Biography

Mak was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on July 10, 1917 but was raised in Iowa. Mak served in the United States Army during World War II between 1941 and 1945. He was awarded two Purple Hearts and one Bronze Star.^[2]

In 1946, Mak joined the Foreign Service, serving as Vice Consul in Hamburg, Germany, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Jidda, Saudi Arabia, and Tripoli, Libya. In 1962, Mak became the first U.S. Ambassador to Kuwait and was responsible for establishing the embassy. In 1969, Mak became the director of INR for near-east south Asia Affairs

Mak officially retired from the Foreign Service in 1970 although even till today, he continues to have strong ties with the US Government and State Department.^[3]

Personal

Dayton Mak lives in Washington DC with his wife of over 40 years. He continues to stay active in the Foreign Service community and travels to The Foreign Service Institute each week. He has one daughter.

Mak was close friends with Francis Meloy, US Ambassador who was assassinated in Beirut, Lebanon. Meloy was best man at Mak's wedding.^[4]

Service chronology

Dayton Mak's Diplomatic Chronology
Position	Host country or organization	Year
US Foreign Service		1946 to 1970
US Foreign Service	Hamburg, Germany	1946 to 1948
US Foreign Service	Dhahran, Saudi Arabia	1948 to 1949
US Foreign Service	Jeddah, Saudi Arabia	1949 to 1950
US Foreign Service	Tripoli, Libya	1951 to 1954
US Foreign Service	London, England	1954 to 1956
US Foreign Service	Tripoli, Libya	1957 to 1959
US Foreign Service	Kuwait	1961 to 1964
US Foreign Service	Beirut, Lebanon	1965 to 1969
US Foreign Service (Bureau of Intelligence and Research Director)	Washington DC	1969 to 1970

Publications

American Ambassadors in a Troubled World: Interviews with American Diplomats (1992, interviews, with Charles Stuart Kennedy)

References

↑ Mak, Dayton. "Dayton S. Mak". Retrieved 10 February 2014.
↑ Mak, Dayton. "Dayton S. Mak".
↑ Mak, Dayton. "Ambassador's Oral History - US State Department". US State Department.
↑ Dayton, Mak. "Oral History".