List of ambassadors of the United States to Nigeria

The following is a list of United States ambassadors to Nigeria.

Ambassador of the United States to Nigeria
Seal of the United States Department of State
Incumbent
David Greene
Chargé d'Affaires ad interim
since March 31, 2023
NominatorThe President of the United States
AppointerThe President
with Senate advice and consent
Inaugural holderJoseph Palmer II
as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
FormationSeptember 23, 1960
WebsiteU.S. Embassy - Abuja

Ambassadors

U.S. diplomatic terms

Career FSO
After 1915, The United States Department of State began classifying ambassadors as career Foreign Service Officers (FSOs) for those who have served in the Foreign Service for a specified amount of time.

Political appointee
A person who is not a career foreign service officer, but is appointed by the president (often as a reward to political friends).

Appointed
The date that the ambassador took the oath of office; also known as "commissioning". It follows confirmation of a presidential appointment by the Senate, or a Congressional recess appointment by the president. In the case of a recess appointment, the ambassador requires subsequent confirmation by the Senate to remain in office.

Presented credentials
The date that the ambassador presented his letter of credence to the head of state or appropriate authority of the receiving nation. At this time the ambassador officially becomes the representative of his country. This would normally occur a short time after the ambassador's arrival on station. The host nation may reject the ambassador by not receiving the ambassador's letter, but this occurs only rarely.

Terminated mission
Usually the date that the ambassador left the country. In some cases a letter of recall is presented, ending the ambassador's commission, either as a means of diplomatic protest or because the diplomat is being reassigned elsewhere and replaced by another envoy.

Chargé d'affaires
The person in charge of the business of the embassy when there is no ambassador commissioned to the host country.

Ad interim
Latin phrase meaning "for the time being", "in the meantime".
Name Title Appointed Presented credentials Terminated mission Notes
Joseph Palmer II[1] - Career FSO Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary September 23, 1960 October 4, 1960 January 16, 1964 The Embassy in Lagos was established October 1, 1960.

Reaccredited when Nigeria became a republic; presented new credentials December 12, 1963.

Elbert G. Mathews - Career FSO March 10, 1964 April 11, 1964 July 26, 1969
William Trueheart - Career FSO September 19, 1969 November 6, 1969 September 1, 1971
John Reinhardt - Career FSO September 30, 1971 December 3, 1971 February 23, 1975
Donald B. Easum - Career FSO March 26, 1975 May 22, 1975 October 15, 1979
Stephen Low - Career FSO September 20, 1979 November 29, 1979 July 4, 1981
Thomas R. Pickering - Career FSO October 26, 1981 November 30, 1981 July 9, 1983
Thomas W. M. Smith - Career FSO February 10, 1984 March 15, 1984 May 5, 1986
Princeton Lyman - Career FSO September 12, 1986 October 10, 1986 July 24, 1989
Lannon Walker - Career FSO October 10, 1989 November 17, 1989 July 10, 1992
William L. Swing - Career FSO June 15, 1992 September 24, 1992 September 22, 1993
Walter Carrington - Political appointee August 10, 1993 November 9, 1993 October 7, 1997
William H. Twaddell - Career FSO November 10, 1997 December 19, 1997 August 3, 2000 The U.S. Embassy was transferred from Lagos to Abuja September 15, 2000.
Howard Franklin Jeter - Career FSO December 28, 2000 March 3, 2001 July 30, 2003
John Campbell - Career FSO May 12, 2004 June 25, 2004 July 19, 2007
Robin R. Sanders - Career FSO October 29, 2007 December 3, 2007 August 27, 2010[2]
Terence P. McCulley - Career FSO August 9, 2010 November 2, 2010 August 29, 2013[3]
James F. Entwistle - Career FSO August 22, 2013 November 26, 2013 July 21, 2016[4] Sworn in October 28, 2013
W. Stuart Symington - Career FSO October 3, 2016 December 1, 2016 August 30, 2019 Sworn in October 31, 2016
Mary Beth Leonard - Career FSO September 11, 2019 December 24, 2019 March 31, 2023[5] Sworn in October 4, 2019

Notes
  1. Commissioned during a recess of the Senate; recommissioned after confirmation on February 6, 1961.
  2. "Robin Renee Sanders (1954–)". Office of the Historian. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  3. "Terence Patrick McCulley (1957–)". Office of the Historian. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  4. "James F. Entwistle (1956–)". Office of the Historian. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  5. https://ng.usembassy.gov/deputy-chief-of-mission-david-greene/

See also

References
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