Post: | Ambassador |
Body: | the United States to Indonesia |
Nativename: | Duta Besar Amerika Serikat ke Indonesia |
Insignia: | US Department of State official seal.svg |
Insigniasize: | 120px |
Insigniacaption: | Seal of the United States Department of State |
Incumbent: | Kamala Shirin Lakhdhir |
Incumbentsince: | August 8, 2024 |
Nominator: | The President of the United States |
Appointer: | The President |
Appointer Qualified: | with Senate advice and consent |
Inaugural: | H. Merle Cochran as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary |
Formation: | December 27, 1949 |
Website: | U.S. Embassy - Jakarta |
This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to the Republic of Indonesia.
Indonesia had been a Dutch colony since 1800, known as the Dutch East Indies. The Dutch were expelled in March 1942 by the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies. After the surrender of Japan in 1945, Sukarno declared independence on August 17, 1945. However, the Netherlands attempted to reestablish their colony during a prolonged war that lasted for four and a half years. Ultimately the struggle was unsuccessful for the Netherlands, and in December 1949, the Netherlands formally recognized Indonesian sovereignty.
The United States immediately recognized the independence of Indonesia and moved to establish diplomatic relations. A U.S. embassy was established in Jakarta on December 27, 1949, under the informal direction of a consul general. President Truman appointed H. Merle Cochran as ambassador the following day.
The United States Embassy in Indonesia is located in Jakarta, with consulates in Surabaya and Medan, and a consular agency in Bali.[1]
H. Merle Cochran[2] – Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | December 28, 1949 | December 30, 1949 | February 27, 1953 | ||
Hugh S. Cumming, Jr.[3] – Career FSO | September 3, 1953 | October 15, 1953 | March 3, 1957 | |||
John M. Allison – Career FSO | February 21, 1957 | March 13, 1957 | January 29, 1958 | |||
Howard P. Jones – Career FSO | February 20, 1958 | March 10, 1958 | May 24, 1965 | |||
Marshall Green – Career FSO | June 4, 1965 | July 26, 1965 | March 26, 1969 | |||
Francis J. Galbraith – Career FSO | May 27, 1969 | July 19, 1969 | February 3, 1974 | |||
David D. Newsom – Career FSO | December 19, 1973 | February 27, 1974 | October 6, 1977 | |||
Edward E. Masters – Career FSO | November 3, 1977 | December 10, 1977 | November 10, 1981 | John Cameron Monjo served as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim, November 1981–February 1983. | ||
John Herbert Holdridge – Career FSO | December 10, 1982 | February 19, 1983 | January 7, 1986 | |||
Paul Dundes Wolfowitz – Political appointee | March 4, 1986 | April 11, 1986 | May 12, 1989 | |||
John Cameron Monjo – Career FSO | May 22, 1989 | May 31, 1989 | July 18, 1992 | |||
Robert L. Barry – Career FSO | July 7, 1992 | August 11, 1992 | July 10, 1995 | |||
J. Stapleton Roy – Career FSO | December 19, 1995 | February 27, 1996 | August 12, 1999 | |||
Robert S. Gelbard – Career FSO | August 9, 1999 | October 18, 1999 | October 14, 2001 | |||
Ralph Leo Boyce – Career FSO | October 1, 2001 | October 24, 2001 | August. 2, 2004 | |||
B. Lynn Pascoe – Career FSO | October 18, 2004 | November 25, 2004 | February 17, 2007 | |||
Cameron R. Hume – Career FSO | May 30, 2007 | August 1, 2007 | August 7, 2010 | |||
Scot Marciel - Career FSO | August 10, 2010 | September 21, 2010 | July 18, 2013 | |||
Robert O. Blake, Jr. - Career FSO | July 30, 2013 | January 30, 2014 | July 18, 2016 | |||
Joseph R. Donovan Jr. - Career FSO | November 4, 2016 | January 13, 2017 | February 14, 2020 | |||
Heather Variava - Career FSO | Chargé d'Affaires ad interim | February 14, 2020 | October 21, 2020 | |||
Sung Kim - Career FSO[4] | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | August 6, 2020 | October 21, 2020 | November 21, 2023 | ||
Michael F. Klaine - Career FSO | Chargé d'Affaires ad interim | November 21, 2023 | July 23, 2024 | |||
Kamala Shirin Lakhdhir - Career FSO | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | May 2, 2024 | August 8, 2024 | Incumbent |