Post: | Ambassador |
Body: | the United States to Zambia |
Insignia: | US Department of State official seal.svg |
Insigniasize: | 120px |
Insigniacaption: | Seal of the United States Department of State |
Incumbent: | Michael C. Gonzales |
Incumbentsince: | September 16, 2022 |
Nominator: | The President of the United States |
Inaugural: | Robert C. Good as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary |
Formation: | March 11, 1965 |
The history of ambassadors of the United States to Zambia began in 1964.
Until 1964 Zambia had been a colony of the British Empire, first as Northern Rhodesia and then as a part of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland. On December 31, 1963, the federation was dissolved into Rhodesia and Northern Rhodesia. On October 24, 1964, Northern Rhodesia gained full independence as the Republic of Zambia.
The United States immediately recognized the new nation and moved to establish diplomatic relations. An embassy in Lusaka was established on October 24, 1964—independence day for Zambia. Robert C. Foulon was appointed as Chargé d’Affaires ad interim pending the appointment of an ambassador. The first ambassador, Robert C. Good was appointed on March 11, 1965. All U.S. Ambassadors to Zambia have held the official title Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.
The United States embassy in Zambia is located in Lusaka.
The U.S. ambassador to Zambia serves concurrently as the U.S. representative to the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA).[1]
Robert C. Good – Political appointee | March 11, 1965 | March 24, 1965 | December 14, 1968 | |
Oliver L. Troxel, Jr. – Career FSO | May 27, 1969 | July 17, 1969 | May 12, 1972 | |
Jean M. Wilkowski – Career FSO | June 27, 1972 | September 26, 1972 | July 24, 1976 | |
Stephen Low – Career FSO | August 5, 1976 | August 31, 1976 | July 5, 1979 | |
Frank George Wisner II – Career FSO | August 2, 1979 | August 28, 1979 | April 19, 1982 | |
Nicholas Platt – Career FSO | July 22, 1982 | August 31, 1982 | December 17, 1984 | |
Paul Julian Hare – Career FSO | July 12, 1985 | July 31, 1985 | August 8, 1988 | |
Jeffrey Davidow – Career FSO | July 11, 1988 | September 1, 1988 | March 31, 1990 | |
Gordon L. Streeb – Career FSO | October 22, 1990 | November 21, 1990 | December 27, 1993 | |
Roland Karl Kuchel[2] – Career FSO | August 9, 1993 | January 14, 1994 | November 10, 1996 | |
Arlene Render – Career FSO | July 2, 1996 | December 20, 1996 | June 30, 1999 | |
David B. Dunn – Career FSO | July 7, 1999 | September 2, 1999 | July 1, 2002 | |
Martin George Brennan – Career FSO | October 3, 2002 | December 5, 2002 | July 15, 2005 | |
Carmen M. Martinez – Career FSO | November 2, 2005 | December 12, 2005 | July 29, 2008 | |
Donald E. Booth – Career FSO | June 4, 2008 | September 19, 2008 | March 17, 2010 | |
Mark C. Storella – Career FSO | August 20, 2010 | September 21, 2010 | August 8, 2013[3] | |
Eric T. Schultz – Career FSO | September 18, 2014 | December 12, 2014 | November 20, 2017 | |
Daniel Lewis Foote – Career FSO | November 20, 2017 | December 14, 2017 | January 2, 2020 | |
Michael C. Gonzales - Career FSO | August 4, 2022 | September 16, 2022 | Incumbent |