Francisco O. Mora Explained

Francisco O. Mora
Office:21st United States Ambassador to the Organization of American States
Term Start:January 18, 2023
President:Joe Biden
Predecessor:Carlos Trujillo
Office1:Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Western Hemisphere
President1:Barack Obama
Term Start1:2009
Term End1:2013
Nationality:American
Education:George Washington University (BA)
University of Miami (MA, PhD)

Francisco O. "Frank" Mora is an American academic who has served as the United States ambassador to the Organization of American States since January 2023.

Education

Mora earned a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs at the George Washington University. He received his Master of Arts. in Inter-American Studies and a Doctor of Philosophy in International Affairs from the University of Miami.[1] He also studied at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru in 1984 and participated in a program on Central American studies in 1988 in Costa Rica.[2]

Career

Mora served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Western Hemisphere from 2009 to 2013.[3] [2] He held several teaching positions, including Professor of National Security Strategy and Latin American Studies at the National War College at the National Defense University from 2004 to 2009, and associate professor and chair in the department of international studies at Rhodes College from 2000 to 2004.[3] He previously served as director of the Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center at FIU's Green School of International and Public Affairs. He is a professor of politics and international relations, and senior researcher, at the Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy at Florida International University.[1] He is the author of five books, including Neighborly Adversaries: U.S.-Latin American Relations (2015); Paraguay and the United States: Distant Allies (2008) and Latin American and Caribbean Foreign Policy (2003);[3] and numerous articles and other publications.

Ambassadorship nomination

On July 29, 2021, President Joe Biden nominated Mora to be the next United States Ambassador to the Organization of American States.[1] [4] On August 2, 2021, his nomination was sent to the Senate.[5] Hearings on his nomination were held before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on May 18, 2022. The committee favorably reported his nomination to the Senate floor on June 23, 2022. The Senate confirmed him by a 51–45 vote on December 14, 2022.[6] He was sworn in on December 30, 2022,[7] and he presented his credentials to the Organization of American States on January 18, 2023.[8]

Awards and recognition

Mora is a recipient of the Office of the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service, Department of Defense.[1]

Personal life

Mora speaks Spanish and Portuguese.[1]

Notes and References

  1. President Biden Announces Six Key Nominations . July 29, 2021 . The White House . Washington, D.C. .
  2. Web site: July 29, 2021 . Biden elige al académico Francisco O. Mora como embajador ante la OEA . July 29, 2021 . elsiglodedurango.com.mx . es.
  3. Web site: Frank O. Mora . July 29, 2021 . Cuban Research Institute.
  4. Web site: Mazzei . Patricia . July 29, 2021 . Biden plans to nominate a Cuban American Democrat to be the U.S. ambassador to O.A.S. . July 29, 2021 . The New York Times . en-US.
  5. Nominations Sent to the Senate . August 2, 2021 . The White House . Washington, D.C. .
  6. Web site: On the Nomination (Confirmation: Francisco O. Mora, of Florida, to be Permanent Representative of the United States of America to the Organization of American States) . United States Senate . December 14, 2022.
  7. Web site: Dr. Frank Mora . United States Department of State . 2023-01-18.
  8. OAS_official . Organization of American States . 1615767450032766976 . Words of new U.S. Permanent Representative to the OAS Frank Mora, during today's presentation of credentials ceremony . 2023-01-18.