Ambassador of the United States to Malaysia | |
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Seat | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
Nominator | The President of the United States |
Appointer | The President with Senate advice and consent |
Inaugural holder | Thomas K. Wright as Chargé d'affaires ad interim |
Formation | August 31, 1957 |
Website | my |
The ambassador of the United States of America to Malaysia is the head of the United States's diplomatic mission to Malaysia. The position has the rank and status of an ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary and is based in the Embassy of the United States, Kuala Lumpur.
Name | Career | Title | Appointment | Presentation of credentials | Termination of mission |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Thomas K. Wright [1] | Career FSO | Chargé d'Affaires | August 31, 1957 | September 4, 1957 | Superseded December 2, 1957 |
Homer M. Byington, Jr. [2] | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | October 3, 1957 | December 2, 1957 | Left post, April 1, 1961 |
Charles F. Baldwin [3] | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | February 22, 1961 | April 29, 1961 | Left post, January 22, 1964 |
James D. Bell | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | March 4, 1964 | March 23, 1964 | Left post, July 15, 1969 |
Jack W. Lydman | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | September 15, 1969 | October 8, 1969 | Left post, December 20, 1973 |
Francis T. Underhill, Jr. [4] | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | December 19, 1973 | February 11, 1974 | Left post, May 10, 1977 |
Robert Hopkins Miller | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | May 26, 1977 | June 8, 1977 | Left post, March 8, 1980 |
Barbara M. Watson | Political appointee | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | August 20, 1980 | September 25, 1980 | Left post, March 1, 1981 |
Ronald DeWayne Palmer | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | June 11, 1981 | June 24, 1981 | Left post, October 30, 1983 |
Thomas P. Shoesmith | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | November 18, 1983 | December 12, 1983 | Left post, February 14, 1987 |
John Cameron Monjo | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | April 7, 1987 | June 10, 1987 | Left post, April 22, 1989 |
Paul Matthews Cleveland | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | October 10, 1989 | November 8, 1989 | Left post, July 23, 1992 |
John Stern Wolf | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | August 11, 1992 | October 7, 1992 | Left post, June 10, 1995 |
John R. Malott | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | December 19, 1995 | January 25, 1996 | Left post December 30, 1998 |
B. Lynn Pascoe | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | October 22, 1998 | March 1, 1999 | Left post August 11, 2001 |
Marie T. Huhtala | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | August 3, 2001 | October 17, 2001 | Left post May 28, 2004 |
Christopher J. LaFleur | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | October 18, 2004 | January 4, 2005 | September 14, 2007 |
James R. Keith | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | May 30, 2007 | December 4, 2007 | Left post, March 15, 2010 |
Paul W. Jones | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | August 5, 2010 | October 18, 2010 | July 8, 2013 |
Joseph Y. Yun | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | September 12, 2013 | October 3, 2013 | October 14, 2016 |
Kamala Shirin Lakhdhir | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | December 9, 2016 | February 21, 2017 | January 21, 2021 |
Brian D. McFeeters | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | December 22, 2020 | February 26, 2021 | August 24, 2023 |
Manu Bhalla | Career FSO | Chargé d'Affaires | August 24, 2023 | December 19, 2023 | |
Edgard Kagan | Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | November 8, 2023 | March 20, 2024 | Incumbent |
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Bilateral ties between Malaysia and the United States were established upon Malayan independence in 1957. The US was, and still is one of the largest trading partners for Malaysia and is traditionally considered to be Malaysia's oldest and closest ally in military, economic and education sectors. Malaya was the predecessor state to Malaysia, a larger federation formed through the merger of Malaya, North Borneo, Sarawak and Singapore in 1963. Immediately before the merger, the latter three territories were previously part of the British Empire. But the US has had consular and commercial presence in Malaya since the 1800s. US merchants, especially Joseph William Torrey together with Thomas Bradley Harris also had commercial interests in north western coast of Borneo in the 19th century as well, where they established the American Trading Company of Borneo.
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