| Post: | Permanent Representative |
| Body: | the United States to NATO |
| Insignia: | US Department of State official seal.svg |
| Insigniasize: | 120 |
| Insigniacaption: | Seal of the United States Department of State |
| Incumbent: | Julianne Smith |
| Incumbentsince: | December 6, 2021 |
| Nominator: | The president of the United States |
| Appointer: | The president of the United States with Senate advice and consent |
| Inaugural: | William H. Draper Jr. |
| Formation: | April 8, 1953 |
| Website: | U.S. Mission - NATO |
The United States permanent representative to NATO (commonly referred to as the U.S. ambassador to NATO) is the official representative of the United States mission to NATO. The representative has the rank of full ambassador and is appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. The official title of the representative is United States permanent representative on the Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, with the rank and status of ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary. The position is currently held by Julianne Smith, who was confirmed by the Senate on November 18, 2021.[1]
The first representative was appointed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953.
| Portrait | Ambassador | Dates served | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | William Henry Draper, Jr. | April 8, 1953 – June 13, 1953 | ||
| 2 | John Chambers Hughes | June 12, 1953 – April 20, 1955 | ||
| 3 | George Walbridge Perkins, Jr. | March 14, 1955 – October 12, 1957 | ||
| 4 | Warren Randolph Burgess | September 21, 1957 – March 23, 1961 | ||
| 5 | Thomas K. Finletter | March 2, 1961 – September 2, 1965 | ||
| 6 | Harlan Cleveland | September 1, 1965 – June 11, 1969 | ||
| 7 | Robert Ellsworth | May 13, 1969 – June 30, 1971 | ||
| 8 | David M. Kennedy | March 17, 1972 – February 1, 1973 | ||
| 9 | Donald Rumsfeld | February 2, 1973 – December 5, 1974 | ||
| 10 | David K. E. Bruce | October 17, 1974 – February 12, 1976 | ||
| 11 | Robert Strausz-Hupé | March 3, 1976 – April 20, 1977 | ||
| 12 | William Tapley Bennett Jr. | April 26, 1977 – March 31, 1983 | ||
| 13 | David Manker Abshire | July 13, 1983 – January 5, 1987 | ||
| 14 | Alton G. Keel, Jr. | March 13, 1987 – June 17, 1989 | ||
| 15 | William Howard Taft IV | August 3, 1989 – June 26, 1992 | ||
| 16 | Reginald Bartholomew | June 15, 1992 – March 25, 1993 | ||
| 17 | Robert E. Hunter | July 1, 1993 – December 31, 1997 | ||
| 18 | Alexander Vershbow | January 1, 1998 – July 9, 2001 | ||
| 19 | R. Nicholas Burns | August 7, 2001 – March 7, 2005 | ||
| 20 | Victoria Nuland | July 13, 2005 – May 2, 2008 | ||
| 21 | Kurt Volker | July 2, 2008 – May 13, 2009 | ||
| 22 | Ivo Daalder | May 15, 2009 – July 6, 2013 | ||
| 23 | Douglas Lute | September 3, 2013 – January 20, 2017 | ||
| 24 | Kay Bailey Hutchison | August 28, 2017 – January 20, 2021 | ||
| 25 | Julianne Smith | December 6, 2021 – present |