Francis Joseph Ricciardone Jr. is a former President of the American University in Cairo. Ambassador Ricciardone was the United States ambassador to Turkey between 2011 and 2014. Previously he was Deputy Ambassador at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan. He was also on leave from the U.S. Department of State as a guest scholar at the U.S. Institute of Peace. He has served as U.S. Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt (2005–2008), the Republic of the Philippines and the Republic of Palau (2002–2005). As a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, he received U.S. government and other organization awards for his work in foreign policy and program management, political reporting and analysis, and peacekeeping.
The foreign, diplomatic, economic, and political relations between Croatia and the United States were established on April 7, 1992 following the dissolution of Yugoslavia. After Croatia's debut as an independent state in 1996, the U.S. established the country as its most important political connection to Southeast Europe. Modern relations are considered to be warm and friendly, with stalwart bilateral collaboration. The Croatian diaspora in the U.S. is estimated to be around 500,000 which, in part, informs the foreign policy of Croatia. The two nations have strong connectivity through tourism, immigration, foreign aid, and economic mutualism. U.S. President George W. Bush approved the NATO membership of Albania and Croatia in October 2008. Croatia and the U.S. are close military allies and share a robust bilateral military-industrial complex. Their closeness has led to the U.S. housing regional intelligence agencies, such as the CIA and NSA, in Croatia. Both are members of NATO, leveraging Croatia's aerospace and defense manufacturing and U.S. military operations to advance multilateral initiatives. After the 2022 Tu-141 drone crash in Zagreb, the U.S. dispatched two F-16 fighter jets in a show of military strength for Croatia. U.S. interests in Croatia are centered on the state's stabilizing influence in the region and extending the global reach of jointly-held Western ideals.
The foreign relations between Croatia and France are bound together by shared history, political development, geography, religion and cultural commonalities. With an extensive history between the two states, modern relations commenced in 1992, following the dissolution of Yugoslavia and the independence of Croatia. Relations are warm and friendly with robust bilateral collaboration. The two nations have strong connectivity through tourism, immigration, foreign aid, and economic mutualism.
Vicki J. Huddleston is a retired U.S. diplomat who served as Ambassador to Mali, and U.S. Ambassador to Madagascar.
Jeanine E. Jackson is an American diplomat. She was the ambassador to Burkina Faso from 2006 to 2009 and to the Republic of Malawi from 2011 to 2014.
Stuart E. Jones is an American diplomat. He previously served as the United States Ambassador to Iraq from 2014 to 2016, and as the United States Ambassador to Jordan from July 21, 2011, to July 28, 2014.
Deborah Kay Jones is an American diplomat and the former United States ambassador to Libya. Prior to her appointment in Libya, she was the United States ambassador to Kuwait from 2008 to 2011.
