Michael Ratney

Michael Alan Ratney[1] (born 1961) is an American diplomat who is the United States ambassador to Saudi Arabia since April 2023. He previously served as the Chargé d'Affaires of the United States Embassy in Israel.[2]

Michael Ratney
United States Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
Assumed office
April 27, 2023
PresidentJoe Biden
Preceded byJohn Abizaid
United States Special Envoy for Syria
In office
July 27, 2015 – January 20, 2017
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byDaniel Rubinstein
Succeeded byJoel Rayburn
United States Consul General in Jerusalem
In office
July 27, 2012 – July 27, 2015
Preceded byDaniel Rubinstein
Succeeded byDonald Blome
Personal details
Born1961 (age 61–62)
SpouseKaren Sasahara
EducationBoston University (BS)
George Washington University (MA)

Early life and education

Raised in Massachusetts, Ratney is a 1979 graduate of Bedford High School.[3] He has a Bachelor of Science in Mass Communication from Boston University and a Master of Arts in International Affairs from the George Washington University.[4]

Career

Ratney is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, with the rank of Minister-Counselor. He joined the service in 1990. He currently serves as the Acting Deputy Director of the U.S. Department of State’s Foreign Service Institute. His most recent assignment before this was Chargé d’Affaires a.i. at the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem. Ratney served as the Dean of the School of Language Studies at the Foreign Service Institute. He was previously on the National Defense University faculty. He served as the State Department’s Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Levant and Israel and Palestinian Affairs, and was the U.S. Special Envoy for Syria. Earlier, Ratney was the U.S. Consul General in Jerusalem. He was the Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Media in the State Department’s Bureau of Public Affairs. Prior to this, he served as a spokesman for the State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. Other assignments include serving as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Doha, Qatar, as well as tours in Mexico City, Baghdad, Beirut, Casablanca, Bridgetown, and Washington, D.C.[5][6]

Nomination as U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia

On April 22, 2022, President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Ratney to be the next United States ambassador to Saudi Arabia.[5] On April 25, 2022, his nomination was sent to the Senate.[7] Hearings on his nomination were held before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on June 16, 2022. The committee favorably reported his nomination to the Senate floor on June 23, 2022.

On September 28, 2022, Democratic Senator Ron Wyden placed a hold on Ratney's nomination due to a Saudi national killing Fallon Smart, a teenager from Wyden's home state of Oregon. The Saudi national responsible for Smart's death was reportedly aided by the Saudi government in fleeing the United States, and Wyden urged any ambassador to Saudi Arabia to make this a priority.[8] His nomination expired at the end of the year and was returned to President Biden on January 3, 2023.[9]

President Biden renominated Ratney the same day. The committee favorably reported the nomination to the Senate floor on March 8, 2023. Ratney was confirmed as U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia by the Senate via voice vote on March 14, 2023.[10]

He presented his credentials to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs on April 27, 2023.[11]

Awards and recognitions

Ratney has won multiple State Department performance awards, including a Presidential Meritorious Service award.[5]

Personal life

Ratney is married to fellow Foreign Service Officer Karen Sasahara; she is the current nominee to be the next US Ambassador to Kuwait. Ratney speaks Arabic and French.[5]

References
  1. "PN1794 — Foreign Service — 103rd Congress (1993-1994)". U.S. Congress. October 4, 1994. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  2. "Ambassador Thomas R. Nides". U.S. Embassy in Israel.
  3. Missile. Bedford High School. 1979. p. 48.
  4. "State Dept Appoints Senior Diplomat Michael Ratney as New U.S. Special Envoy for Syria". Diplopundit. July 28, 2015. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  5. "President Biden Announces Key Nominees" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. April 22, 2022. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  6. "Ratney, Michael". U.S. Department of State.
  7. "Nominations and Withdrawals Sent to the Senate" (Press release). Washington, D.C.: The White House. April 25, 2022. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  8. "Wyden Announces Hold On Nominee for U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia | U.S. Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon". www.wyden.senate.gov. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
  9. "PN1962 - Nomination of Michael Alan Ratney for Department of State, 117th Congress (2021-2022)". www.congress.gov. April 25, 2022. Retrieved June 17, 2022.
  10. "PN53 — Michael Alan Ratney — Department of State 118th Congress (2023-2024)". US Congress. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
  11. "Newly appointed US ambassador to the Kingdom presents credentials to Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs". Arab News. April 27, 2023. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
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