Embassy of the United States, Kyiv

Last updated
Embassy of the United States, Kyiv
Seal of an Embassy of the United States of America.svg
Posol'stvo SShA v Ukraine.jpg
Embassy of the United States, Kyiv
Location4 A.I. Sikorsky St.
04112 Kyiv, Ukraine
Coordinates 50°27′54″N30°25′55″E / 50.4650°N 30.4320°E / 50.4650; 30.4320
Opened1992
Relocated2012
2022 (temporary)
Ambassador Bridget A. Brink
Website ua.usembassy.gov

The Embassy of the United States of America in Kyiv is the diplomatic mission of the United States to Ukraine.

Contents

History

Previous building (former office of Communist Party) of the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv from 1992 to 2012 Embassy of USA in Kyiv (1992-2012).jpg
Previous building (former office of Communist Party) of the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv from 1992 to 2012

The United States recognized the independence of Ukraine on December 26, 1991, and opened an embassy in its capital, Kyiv, on January 22, 1992. This first embassy was located in the former regional office of the Communist Party of Ukraine for Kyiv's Shevchenkivskyi District that was confiscated from the Communists soon after the 1991 August putsch in Moscow. That building was erected sometime in the 1950s on the grounds of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on present day 10 Volodymyr Vynnychenko Street, destroyed by the Soviets in 1935. [1] This was in the mold of other newly independent states in Eastern Europe, where former Communist Party offices were chosen as they were often cheap and expansive enough for the newly needed embassies. [2]

In 2012, the embassy moved to its current 4.5 hectare (11.1 acres) location, acquired for $247 million. The embassy is on Igor Sikorsky Street, close to Kyiv’s western outskirts, and 15 minutes walk from Beresteiska station. [3] Previously known as Tankova Street, the street was renamed by the City Council after Ukrainian-born aircraft design engineer Igor Sikorsky, due to a request from the embassy.

On June 8, 2017, a blast occurred outside the embassy. [4]

During the 2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis, the embassy moved to Lviv, closer to the western border of the country with Poland, and adopted other security measures. [5] As military buildup and tensions continued to rise, the embassy was relocated to Poland a couple days before Russia launched a full-scale invasion. [6] [7] The embassy was reopened on May 18, 2022. [8] [9] [10]

Picketing

Since 2004, the embassy has been picketed annually on April 8 by the "Institute Republic" group of human rights activist Volodymyr Chemerys, due to the refusal of the US government to pay compensation for the death of Ukrainian journalist Taras Protsyuk, who perished in 2003 during the Iraq War.

Staff

The U.S. Embassy in Kyiv is staffed by approximately 181 Americans and more than 560 Ukrainians.

The current Ambassador of the United States of America to Ukraine is Bridget Ann Brink. Ambassador Brink was nominated by President Biden to be U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine on April 25, 2022, confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate on May 18, 2022, and arrived in Kyiv on May 29, 2022. [11]

Key U.S. Embassy officials include:

List of chiefs of mission

U.S. Ambassadors, and Chargés d'Affaires (with blue background)
NAmbassadorsUkrainianImageTerm
# Jon Gundersen [12] Джон Ґундерсен Jon Gundersen.jpg 1992
Chargé d'Affaires
1 Roman Popadiuk [13] Роман Попадюк Roman Popadiuk.jpg 1992–1993
2 William Green Miller [14] Вільям Ґрін Міллер William Green Miller.jpg 1993–1998
3 Steven Karl Pifer [15] Стівен Карл Пайфер Steven Pifer, 2013 (cropped).jpg 1998–2000
4 Carlos Pascual [16] Карлос Паскуаль Carlos Pascual.jpg 2000–2003
5 John E. Herbst [17] Джон Едвард Гербст John E. Herbst, US Dept of State photo portrait, 2002.jpg 2003–2006
6 William B. Taylor Jr. [18] Вільям Тейлор Ukraine taylor.jpg 2006–2009
7 John F. Tefft [19] Джон Теффт John F Tefft ambassador 2014.jpg 2009–2013
8 Geoffrey R. Pyatt Джеффрі Пайєтт Geoffrey-Pyatt.jpg 2013–2016
9 Marie Yovanovitch Марі Йованович Marie L. Yovanovitch.jpg 2016–2019
# Joseph Pennington Джозеф Пеннінгтон Dzhozef Pennington.jpg 2019
Acting Chargé d'Affaires [20]
# Kristina Kvien [21] [22] Крістіна Квін Kristina Kvien.jpg 2019
Chargé d'Affaires [23]
# William B. Taylor Jr. [24] Вільям Тейлор William B. Taylor, Jr. (cropped).jpg 2019–2020
Chargé d'Affaires [23]
# Kristina Kvien [21] [25] Крістіна Квін Kristina Kvien, June 2019.jpg 2020–2022
Chargé d'Affaires [23]
10 Bridget A. Brink [26] Бріджет Енн Брінк
Bridget A. Brink official photo.jpg
2022–present [26]

See also

Related Research Articles

Diplomatic rank is a system of professional and social rank used in the world of diplomacy and international relations. A diplomat's rank determines many ceremonial details, such as the order of precedence at official processions, table seatings at state dinners, the person to whom diplomatic credentials should be presented, and the title by which the diplomat should be addressed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Ukraine, Washington, D.C.</span> Diplomatic mission of Ukraine to the US

The Embassy of Ukraine in Washington, D.C., is the diplomatic mission of Ukraine to the United States. The embassy is located at 3350 M Street NW, in the heart of Georgetown's commercial district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John F. Tefft</span> American diplomat

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ukraine–United States relations</span> Bilateral relations

The United States officially recognized the independence of Ukraine on December 25, 1991. The United States upgraded its consulate in the capital, Kyiv, to embassy status on January 21, 1992. In 2002, relations between the United States and Ukraine deteriorated after one of the recordings made during the Cassette Scandal revealed an alleged transfer of a sophisticated Ukrainian defense system to Saddam Hussein's Iraq.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australia–Ukraine relations</span> Bilateral relations

Diplomatic relations between Australia and Ukraine were established in 1992. Ukraine has had an embassy in Canberra since March 2003 and the Australian Embassy in Kyiv was established in December 2014, however, Australia closed its embassy in Kyiv in February 2022 due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Ukraine, Moscow</span> Diplomatic mission of Ukraine to Russia

The Embassy of Ukraine in Moscow was the chief diplomatic mission of Ukraine in the Russian Federation. It was located at 18 Leontyevsky Lane in Moscow.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Volodymyr Yelchenko</span> Ukrainian diplomat

Volodymyr Yuriyovich Yelchenko is a Ukrainian diplomat. His latest post was the Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States. from December 2019 until February 2021. Previously to this appointment, he was the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations since December 9, 2015. and was formerly Ambassador of Ukraine to Russia from July 2010 until he was recalled for consultations in March 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Ukraine, Berlin</span>

The Embassy of Ukraine in Berlin is the diplomatic mission of Ukraine in Germany. Since 23 September 2022, Oleksii Makeiev is the Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Ukraine, Minsk</span>

The Embassy of Ukraine in Minsk is the diplomatic mission of Ukraine in Belarus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Embassy of Poland, Kyiv</span>

The Embassy of Poland in Kyiv is the diplomatic mission of the Republic of Poland in Ukraine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vadym Prystaiko</span> Ukrainian diplomat

Vadym Volodymyrovych Prystaiko is a Ukrainian diplomat who was Ukraine's ambassador to the United Kingdom. He was appointed by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on 20 July 2020 and held the position until he was dismissed by Zelenskyy three years later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yaroslav Brisiuck</span> Ukrainian diplomat

Yaroslav Brisiuck is a Ukrainian diplomat. Ambassador of Ukraine to the United States (2015).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard M. Mills Jr.</span> American diplomat (born 1959)

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kristina Kvien</span> American diplomat

Kristina A. Kvien is an American diplomat who has served as United States ambassador to Armenia since February 2023. She previously served as United States chargé d’affaires to Ukraine from May to June 2019 and from January 2020 to May 2022. From June 2019 to January 2020, she was deputy chief of mission at the Embassy of the United States in Kyiv.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George P. Kent</span> American diplomat

George P. Kent is an American diplomat. He is ambassador to Estonia since February 21, 2023. George Kent served as deputy assistant secretary of state for the European and Eurasian Affairs from 2018 to 2021. As a United States Foreign Service officer, his early service has included assignments in the U.S. diplomatic missions to Poland, Thailand and Uzbekistan. In 2004, he was assigned to serve as deputy political counselor in Kyiv, Ukraine, and was deputy chief of mission in Kyiv from 2015 to 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bridget A. Brink</span> American diplomat

Bridget Ann Brink is an American diplomat serving as the United States Ambassador to Ukraine. In April 2022, she was nominated by President Joe Biden to be the United States ambassador to Ukraine, and presented her credentials in May 2022. She previously served as the United States Ambassador to Slovakia from August 20, 2019, until May 18, 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sergiy Kyslytsya</span> Current Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations

Sergiy Olehovych Kyslytsya is a Ukrainian career diplomat, who serves as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine and Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations. He had previously served as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine (2014–2019).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joseph S. Pennington</span> American diplomat

Joseph S. Pennington is a former American diplomat who is a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Minister-Counselor and is the Senior Advisor to the Ambassador on U.S. Assistance to Ukraine. When Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch was recalled in the spring of 2019, and incoming Deputy Chief of Mission Kristina Kvien not to arrive in Kyiv on May 28, Pennington continued to serve as chargé d'affaires and acting deputy chief through the transition period. It has been reported that Pennington was one of two Embassy officials who were briefed on a meeting in which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he felt pressure from the Trump Administration to investigate Hunter Biden.

References

  1. "Втрачений Київ: перший греко-католицький храм Києва, що не сподобався комуністам". 17 February 2020.
  2. Loeffler, Jane C. (2011). The architecture of diplomacy : building America's embassies (2nd ed.). New York: Princeton Architectural. pp. 248, 264. ISBN   978-1-56898-984-6. OCLC   700033660.
  3. "The Embassy has moved!". Archived from the original on 2012-05-09. Retrieved 2012-05-31.
  4. "Ukraine: Blast at United States embassy in Kiev, no casualties reported". Business Standard. June 8, 2017. Retrieved June 8, 2017.
  5. Lewis, Simon; Landay, Jonathan (15 February 2022). "U.S. moving Ukraine embassy from Kyiv to Lviv amid Russian buildup". Reuters . Retrieved 2022-02-16 via www.reuters.com.
  6. Beals, Monique (21 February 2022). "US relocates Ukraine embassy staff to Poland". The Hill . Retrieved 2022-02-24.
  7. "U.S. Embassy Staff in Ukraine Have Been Relocated to Poland". Government Executive. 22 February 2022. Retrieved 2022-02-24.
  8. @SecBlinken (May 18, 2022). "The Stars and Stripes fly again over Embassy Kyiv. I can announce that we have officially resumed Embassy operation…" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  9. "US Flag Raised at Embassy in Kyiv as Operations Resume". YouTube .
  10. "US reopens embassy in Kyiv". 18 May 2022.
  11. "Ambassador Bridget A. Brink". U.S. Embassy in Ukraine. Retrieved 2022-08-08.
  12. The "Oslo Syndrome", American Diplomacy, November, 2011. Accessed April 1, 2014.
  13. "Previous Ambassadors". Archived from the original on 2012-05-09. Retrieved 2012-05-31.
  14. "Embassy of the United States KYIV-UKRAINE. William Green Miller". Archived from the original on 2015-10-01. Retrieved 2012-11-04.
  15. "Embassy of the United States KYIV-UKRAINE. Steven Karl Pifer". Archived from the original on 2013-02-15. Retrieved 2012-11-04.
  16. "Carlos Pascual". United States Department of State. Archived from the original on 2011-05-28. Retrieved 2011-07-30.
  17. "A testing time for democracy". The Guardian . 2004-10-27. Archived from the original on 2022-12-09.
  18. Ex-US ambassador to Georgia John Tefft to lead diplomatic mission in Ukraine, Interfax-Ukraine (September 30, 2009)
  19. Yushchenko accepted credentials of US Ambassador and Ambassador of Turkey to Ukraine, UNIAN (December 7, 2009)
  20. Acting Deputy Chief of Mission Joseph Pennington
  21. 1 2 Grytsenko, Oksana (2019-05-31). "Kristina Kvien to temporarily head US Embassy in Ukraine". Kyiv Post. Retrieved 2019-10-11.
  22. Deputy Chief of Mission Kristina Kvien
  23. 1 2 3 "Welcoming Ambassador William B. Taylor Back to Ukraine as Chargé d'Affaires". US Embassy in Ukraine. 18 June 2019. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  24. Bonner, Brian (2019-06-18). "William B. Taylor returns to Ukraine to lead US mission". Kyiv Post. Retrieved 2019-10-04.
  25. Deputy Chief of Mission Kristina Kvien
  26. 1 2 "Ambassador Bridget A. Brink". U.S. Embassy in Ukraine. Retrieved 2022-09-06.