Ambassador of the United States to the Democratic Republic of the Congo | |
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Nominator | The President of the United States |
Appointer | The President with Senate advice and consent |
Inaugural holder | Clare H. Timberlake as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary |
Formation | July 5, 1960 |
Website | U.S. Embassy - Kinshasa |
This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
From 1877 until 1960, the republic had been a colony of Belgium, first under the name Congo Free State and then Belgian Congo.
The Congo was granted its independence on June 30, 1960, adopting the name “Republic of the Congo” (République du Congo). As the French colony of Middle Congo (Moyen-Congo) also chose the name Republic of Congo upon receiving its independence, the two countries were more commonly known as Congo-Léopoldville and Congo-Brazzaville, after their capital cities.
The United States immediately recognized the new Republic of the Congo and moved to establish diplomatic relations. The embassy in Léopoldville (now Kinshasa) was established on June 30, 1960, with John D. Tomlinson as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim. The first ambassador, Clare H. Timberlake was appointed on July 5, 1960.
In 1971, President Joseph-Désiré Mobutu changed the country’s official name to Zaire.
In 1997, President Laurent Kabila restored the name "Democratic Republic of the Congo", previously used from 1964 to 1971.
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 to remain in office. 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. Ad interim Latin phrase meaning "for the time being", "in the meantime". |
Name | Title | Appointed | Presented credentials | Terminated mission | Notes |
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Clare H. Timberlake – Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | July 5, 1960 | July 25, 1960 | June 15, 1961 | |
Edmund A. Gullion – Career FSO | August 3, 1961 | September 11, 1961 | February 20, 1964 | ||
G. McMurtrie Godley – Career FSO | February 20, 1964 | March 23, 1964 | October 15, 1966 | ||
Robert H. McBride – Career FSO | May 10, 1967 | June 29, 1967 | May 16, 1969 | ||
Sheldon B. Vance – Career FSO | May 27, 1969 | June 28, 1969 | March 26, 1974 | ||
Deane R. Hinton – Career FSO [1] | June 20, 1974 | August 21, 1974 | June 21, 1975 | ||
Walter L. Cutler – Career FSO | November 20, 1975 | December 23, 1975 | May 9, 1979 | ||
Robert B. Oakley – Career FSO | November 6, 1979 | November 28, 1979 | August 22, 1982 | ||
Peter Dalton Constable – Career FSO | September 30, 1982 | October 18, 1982 | August 31, 1984 | ||
Brandon Hambright Grove, Jr. – Career FSO | August 13, 1984 | September 18, 1984 | September 18, 1987 | ||
William Caldwell Harrop – Career FSO | December 18, 1987 | January 28, 1988 | May 18, 1991 | ||
Melissa Foelsch Wells – Career FSO | April 25, 1991 | June 11, 1991 | March 21, 1992 | ||
John M. Yates | Chargé d'Affaires ad interim | March 21, 1992 | Unknown | September 1995 | |
Roger A. Meece | September 1995 | Unknown | November 23, 1995 | ||
Daniel H. Simpson – Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | October 3, 1995 | November 23, 1995 | June 11, 1998 | |
William Lacy Swing – Career FSO [2] | August 11, 1998 | October 13, 1998 | August 11, 2001 | ||
Aubrey Hooks – Career FSO | July 12, 2001 | September 4, 2001 | April 17, 2004 | ||
Roger A. Meece – Career FSO | May 14, 2004 | August 3, 2004 | August 14, 2007 | ||
William J. Garvelink – Career FSO | July 2, 2007 | November 29, 2007 | May 10, 2010 | ||
Samuel C. Laeuchli - Career FSO | Chargé d'Affaires ad interim | August 2010 | Unknown | November 4, 2010 | |
James F. Entwistle - Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | August 8, 2010 | November 4, 2010 | August 10, 2013 | |
James C. Swan - Career FSO | August 6, 2013 | November 1, 2013 | December 31, 2016 | ||
Michael A. Hammer - Career FSO | September 6, 2018 | December 22, 2018 | July 9, 2022 | ||
Lucy Tamlyn - Career FSO | June 22, 2022 | February 6, 2023 | Incumbent |
Discovered in the 1990s, human remains in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been dated to approximately 90,000 years ago. The first real states, such as the Kongo, the Lunda, the Luba and Kuba, appeared south of the equatorial forest on the savannah from the 14th century onwards.
Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was a Congolese state from 1971 to 1997 in Central Africa that was previously and is now again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Zaire was, by area, the third-largest country in Africa, and the 11th-largest country in the world. With a population of over 23 million inhabitants, Zaire was the most-populous officially Francophone country in Africa, as well as one of the most populous in Africa.
Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banga was a Congolese politician and military officer who was the president of Zaire from 1965 to 1997. He also served as Chairman of the Organisation of African Unity from 1967 to 1968. During the Congo Crisis, Mobutu, serving as Chief of Staff of the Army and supported by Belgium and the United States, deposed the democratically elected government of left-wing nationalist Patrice Lumumba in 1960. Mobutu installed a government that arranged for Lumumba's execution in 1961, and continued to lead the country's armed forces until he took power directly in a second coup in 1965.
The national flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is a sky blue flag, adorned with a yellow star in the upper left canton and cut diagonally by a red stripe with a yellow fimbriation. It was adopted on 20 February 2006. A new constitution, ratified in December 2005 and which came into effect in February 2006, promoted a return to a flag similar to that flown between 1963 and 1971, with a change from a royal blue to sky blue background. Blue represents peace. Red stands for "the blood of the country's martyrs", yellow the country's wealth; and the star symbol the future for the country. It is one of the few national flags incorporating a diagonal line, with other examples including Tanzania, Namibia, Trinidad and Tobago, and Brunei.
Article 2 of the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo divides the country into the capital city of Kinshasa and 25 named provinces. It also gives the capital the status of a province. Therefore, in many contexts Kinshasa is regarded as the 26th province.
The Republic of the Congo was a sovereign state in Central Africa, created with the independence of the Belgian Congo in 1960. From 1960 to 1966, the country was also known as Congo-Léopoldville to distinguish it from its northwestern neighbor, which is also called the Republic of the Congo, alternatively known as "Congo-Brazzaville". In 1964, the state's official name was changed to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but the two countries continued to be distinguished by their capitals; with the renaming of Léopoldville as Kinshasa in 1966, it became also known as Congo-Kinshasa. After Joseph Désiré Mobutu, commander-in-chief of the national army, seized control of the government, the Democratic Republic of the Congo became the Republic of Zaire in 1971. It would again become the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1997. The period between 1960 and 1964 is referred to as the First Congolese Republic.
Lovanium University was a Catholic Jesuit university in Kinshasa in the Belgian Congo. The university was established in 1954 on the Kimwenza plateau, near Kinshasa. The university continued to function after independence until it was merged into the National University of Zaire in 1971. It can be considered an antecedent of the University of Kinshasa.
Republic of the Congo–United States relations are the international relations between the Republic of the Congo and the United States of America.
Democratic Republic of the Congo–Russia relations are the bilateral foreign relations between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Russia. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has an embassy in Moscow and an honorary consulate in Yekaterinburg. Russia has an embassy in Kinshasa. The relations between the two countries were established on July 7, 1960, and restored since November 30, 1967.
Margaret Joy Tibbetts was an American diplomat. A career Foreign Service Officer, she was the United States Ambassador to Norway from 1964 to 1969 under President Lyndon Johnson. She attended Gould Academy, Wheaton College in Massachusetts and her Ph.D. from Bryn Mawr College. She was awarded an honorary degree from Bates College in 1962 and Bowdoin College in 1973.
Belgium–Congo relations refers to relations between the Kingdom of Belgium and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The relationship started with the exploration of the Congo river by Henry Morton Stanley.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Brazil–Democratic Republic of the Congo relations refers to the current and historical relations between the Federative Republic of Brazil and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Both nations are members of the Group of 24, Group of 77 and the United Nations.
Marcel Antoine Lihau or Ebua Libana la Molengo Lihau was a Congolese jurist, law professor and politician who served as the inaugural First President of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Congo from 1968 until 1975 and was involved in the creation of two constitutions for the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Democratic Republic of the Congo–United Kingdom relations are the bilateral relations between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the United Kingdom. The Democratic Republic of the Congo maintains an embassy in London and the United Kingdom maintains an embassy in Kinshasa.
DR Congo–Mexico relations are the diplomatic relations between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the United Mexican States. Both nations are members of the Group of 24 and the United Nations.
Democratic Republic of the Congo- Italy relations are the current and historical foreign and trade relations between Democratic Republic of the Congo and Italy.
Relations between the Congo Free State and the United States began after recognition between the two states in 1885 when the Congo Free State was established. After Belgium under Leopold II annexed the Congo Free State in 1908, later becoming Belgian Congo, relations ceased between the two nations.