James F. Collins | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Ambassador to Russia | |
| In office January 26, 1998 –July 10, 2001 | |
| President | Bill Clinton George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Thomas R. Pickering |
| Succeeded by | Alexander R. Vershbow |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 4,1939 Aurora,Illinois |
| Alma mater | Harvard College Indiana University Bloomington |
James Franklin Collins (born June 4,1939) [1] is a former United States Ambassador to Russia. A career Foreign Service Officer in the State Department,he is a Russian specialist. [2]
Collins graduated from Harvard College cum laude in 1961 and earned a master's degree in history and Certificate from the Russian and East European Institute from Indiana University Bloomington in 1964. [1] He studied at Moscow State University and conducted archival research during 1965–66 as an exchange student in the history faculty and conducted research at the British Museum in 1966 as an Indiana University fellow. He became a professor at the United States Naval Academy in 1967,where he taught Russian and European history,American government and economics.
After joining the Foreign Service in 1969,he served at the consulate general in Izmir,Turkey,1969 to 1971. He was appointed as second secretary at the American embassy Moscow 1973–75,and political counselor at the American embassy in Amman,Jordan 1982 to 1984. [2]
At the State Department in Washington he held positions of deputy executive secretary for Europe and Latin America;director of the Department of State's Operations Center;and policy positions in the Bureaus of European and Canadian Affairs,Near East and South Asian Affairs,and Intelligence and Research. In the years 1987 to 1988,he served as a staff member of the National Security Council as director for Intelligence Policy. [3]
He was assigned to Moscow as deputy chief of mission in 1990 [2] and served in that capacity with three ambassadors,Jack F. Matlock,Robert S. Strauss [1] and Thomas R. Pickering. When Matlock retired in the summer of 1991,Collins became chargéd'affaires [4] and was acting ambassador during the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt that led to the breakup of the Soviet Union. He similarly was Chargéd'affaires when President Gorbachev signed the decree formally ending the existence of the USSR. Following his return to Washington in 1993,he then served as senior coordinator and ambassador at large and special advisor to the secretary of state for the New Independent States,before being named ambassador to Russia by President Bill Clinton in 1997.
As ambassador from 1997 to 2001,Collins's tenure played a role in critical moments in the development of Russian relations with the United States. In addition to several summits between President Clinton and President Boris Yeltsin,and the transition of power from President Yeltsin to Vladimir Putin on New Year's Day 2000., [5] his tenure as ambassador was marked by the economic collapse following Russia's default in 1998 and the Kosovo crisis of 1998–1999.
After a career in the Foreign Service,he has been active in the non-profit world and has served as a senior advisor at the law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer &Feld. [4]
In January 2007 he was appointed the director of the Russian and Eurasian Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. [4] [6]
He is married to Dr. Naomi F. Collins and they have two sons,Robert and Jonathan. [6]
He has served as a board member or advisor to the [2]
 Russian Empire (1780–1917) |
|
|---|---|
 Soviet Union (1933–1991) | |
| Russian Federation (1991–present) | |
James Franklin Jeffrey is an American diplomat who served most recently as the United States Special Representative for Syria Engagement and the Special Envoy to the International military intervention against ISIL.
Charles "Chip" Eustis Bohlen was an American diplomat, ambassador, and expert on the Soviet Union. He helped shape United States foreign policy during World War II and the Cold War and helped develop the Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe.
Edward Peter Djerejian is a former United States diplomat who served in eight administrations from John F. Kennedy to Bill Clinton (1962–94.) He served as the United States Ambassador to Syria (1988–91) and Israel (1993–94), Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan and Deputy Press Secretary of Foreign Affairs (1985–1986), and was Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs (1991–1993.) He was the founding director of Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy (1994-2022) He is a senior fellow at the Middle East Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and is on the board of trustees of the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Djerejian was elected chairman of Occidental Petroleum Corporation's board of directors (2013–2015). Djerejian is the author of the book Danger and Opportunity: An American Ambassador's Journey Through the Middle East
John F. Tefft is an American diplomat who has served as a Foreign Service Officer since 1972. He was the United States Ambassador to Russia between July 31, 2014 and September 28, 2017. He had previously served as the United States' ambassador to Ukraine, Georgia, and Lithuania.
Jackson C. McDonald is a former United States diplomat and a career officer of the U.S. Foreign Service. He served as the Ambassador to Guinea 2004–2007. From 2001 to 2004, he served as U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of the Gambia.
Llewellyn E. "Tommy" Thompson Jr. was an American diplomat. He served in Sri Lanka, Austria, and for a lengthy period in the Soviet Union, where his tenure saw some of the most significant events of the Cold War. He was a key advisor to President John F. Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis. A 2019 assessment described him as "arguably the most influential figure who ever advised U.S. presidents about policy toward the Soviet Union during the Cold War."
William Joseph Burns is an American diplomat who has served as director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in the Biden administration since March 19, 2021. He previously served as U.S. deputy secretary of state from 2011 to 2014; in 2009 he served as acting secretary of state for a day prior to the Senate confirmation of Hillary Clinton. Burns retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in 2014 after a 32-year diplomatic career. From 2014 to 2021, he served as president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Ross L. Wilson is an American diplomat who was the chargé d'affaires of the United States to Afghanistan from 2020 to 2021. He was the U.S. Ambassador to Turkey from 2005 to 2008 and the U.S. Ambassador to Azerbaijan from 2000 to 2003, with the personal rank of Minister-Counselor. He also teaches part-time at Carleton College. Wilson also previously served as director of the Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center at the Atlantic Council.
Tracey Ann Jacobson is an American diplomat and a former United States Ambassador to Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kosovo and Ethiopia. She served as the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs from January 2017 through October 2017. She retired then returned to active duty in 2021 as the State Department's Director of the Afghanistan Task Force, and then as Chargé d’Affaires, ad interim, at the Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She attended Johns Hopkins University.
Jack Foust Matlock Jr. is an American former ambassador, career Foreign Service Officer, a teacher, a historian, and a linguist. He was a specialist in Soviet affairs during some of the most tumultuous years of the Cold War, and served as the U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union from 1987 to 1991.
The Distinguished Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State. Similar versions of the same award exist for the former U.S. Information Agency, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and USAID. It is presented to groups or individuals in recognition of exceptionally outstanding service or achievements of marked national or international significance.
Alan Philip Larson is a diplomat and a former United States Ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1990–93. From 1996 to 1999, he served as U.S. Department of State Assistant Secretary for Economic and Business Affairs. In 1999 to 2005, he also served as US Undersecretary of State for Economic, Business, and Agricultural Affairs, OECD. He is a United States Career Ambassador, and a recipient of the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award.
Philip Thomas Reeker is an American diplomat and career foreign service officer with the Department of State who currently serves as the senior advisor for Caucasus negotiations. He was previously Chargé d'affaires of the United States mission to the United Kingdom from 2021 to 2022 and acting assistant secretary of state in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs from 2019 to 2021.
Hugo Llorens is a retired American diplomat. He is a former U.S. Special Chargé d'Affaires of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, (2016–17) and United States Ambassador to Honduras (2008–2011). In his 36-year career he was posted to numerous countries spanning 6 continents. In 2002–2003, he joined the White House staff and served as Director of Andean Affairs advising the President and National Security Advisor on issues pertaining to Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador.
Robert Frank Godec is an American diplomat who has served as the United States ambassador to Thailand since October 2022. He formerly served as the United States ambassador to Kenya from 2013 to 2019 and the United States ambassador to Tunisia from 2006 to 2009. He also served as acting assistant secretary for the Bureau of African Affairs from January to September 2021.
Atul Keshap is an American diplomat and career United States Foreign Service Officer from Virginia who recently served as the Chargé d'affaires of the United States mission to India. He formerly served as U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State of the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs at the United States Department of State. In January, 2022, he was appointed as the president of U.S.-India Business Council. In 2022, Ambassador Keshap was elected into membership of the American Academy of Diplomacy. In May 2023, Keshap was named one of Washington's most influential foreign policy influencers for his work to shape U.S. relations with India.
Richard Merrill Mills Jr. is an American diplomat who serves as the United States deputy ambassador to the United Nations. He served as the U.S. Chargé d'Affaires and Acting Permanent Representative to the United Nations between January 20, 2021, and February 24, 2021, when Linda Thomas-Greenfield became ambassador. In July 2022, he was announced as the nominee to serve as the United States ambassador to Nigeria.
Kelly Colleen Degnan is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Minister-Counselor, currently serving as the US Ambassador to Georgia. Prior to that she served as the Political Advisor to the Commander of United States Naval Forces Europe / United States Naval Forces Africa. Previously, she was the Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) to the U.S. Mission to Italy and San Marino in Rome, Italy. In September 2019, she was nominated to be the next U.S. Ambassador to Georgia.
D. Brent Hardt is an American career Senior Foreign Service Officer and present Consul General at the U.S. Consulate in Vancouver, B.C., Canada who served in the Western Hemisphere, Europe, and in Political-Military assignments. From 2011-2014 he served as U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and Plenipotentiary Representative of the United States to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). He most recently served as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim at the U.S. Embassy in Paris, France beginning in August 2017. Prior to his arrival in Paris, he served as Foreign Policy Advisor to the Commander of U.S. Central Command and as Foreign Policy Advisor to the Commander of U.S. Special Operations Command. Other assignments include service as Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean from 2009-2011, and Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires at U.S. Embassies in The Bahamas (2005-2008) and the Holy See in Rome (2002-2005).
Elizabeth Rood is an American diplomat who served as the chargée d'affaires of the U.S. mission to Russia from 2022 to 2023, and is the nominee to serve as the United States ambassador to Turkmenistan.
