Credit: UN Photo/Loey Felipe) President Biden has appointed former UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman as the new U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Apr. 23, 2021.
By Gary Raynaldo DIPLOMATIC TIMES
U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman will be stepping down from his post, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced Thursday. Feltman was initially set to take on his diplomatic role for less than a year, according to Blinken. “However, the ongoing instability in the Horn of Africa and the region’s interlinked political, security, and humanitarian challenges demand sustained focus by the United States,” he said. Blinken announced Feltman’s departure the same day he arrived in Ethiopia to meet with senior government officials regarding peace talks to bring an end to the year-long bloody conflict in the Horn of Africa nation. Ambassador Feltman’s appointment in April 2021 came amid growing U.S. concern over the volatile situation in Ethiopia, including the conflict in Tigray; escalating tensions between Ethiopia and Sudan. Today, the bloody conflict is said to have killed thousands of people, displaced millions, and created starvation for hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians. Sudan, which borders Ethiopia, is also in chaos with the recent resignation of Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok.
U.S. Appoints Veteran Diplomat David Satterfield As New Special Envoy For Horn Of Africa
Ambassador David M. Satterfield will be the new U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa (Credit: tr.usembassy.gov)
Blinken said he is looking forward to welcoming Ambassador David Satterfield in the coming days as the U.S. Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa once Feltman ends his appointment in the next few days. Satterfield is the outgoing U.S. Ambassador to Turkey.
“Ambassador Satterfield’s decades of diplomatic experience and work amidst some of the world’s most challenging conflicts will be instrumental in our continued effort to promote a peaceful and prosperous Horn of Africa and to advance U.S. interests in this strategic region,” Blinken said.
Ambassador Satterfield was confirmed as U.S. Ambassador to Turkey on June 27, 2019. Satterfield entered the Foreign Service in 1980 and holds the rank of Career Minister. He also served from June until July 2019 as Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State. He served as Acting Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs from September 2017 to June 2019, and from July 2009 until August 2017 as the Director General of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) in the Sinai Peninsula. At the Department of State, Satterfield served as Coordinator for Iraq and Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State, U.S. Deputy Chief of Mission in Iraq, Assistant Secretary of State (Acting) for Near Eastern Affairs, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, Chief of Mission in Cairo, and U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon.
His Middle East experience spans almost forty years and also includes assignments in Syria, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia and two tours in Lebanon. Ambassador Satterfield served as Director of Arab and Arab-Israeli Affairs in the Department of State and as Director for Near Eastern Affairs on the National Security Council Staff from 1993 to 1996, where he worked primarily on the Arab-Israeli peace process.
Ambassador Satterfield’s languages include Arabic and French. Ambassador Satterfield attended the University of Maryland and Georgetown University.
Ambassador Feltman To Continue Serving in State Department, Working with Molly Phee, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs
Molly Catherine Phee, a career diplomat, is President Biden’s nominee to become his U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs. (Credit USIP.org)
Secretary of State Blinken said Ambassador Feltman will continue to serve the State Department in an advisory capacity, working closely with him and Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee. “We are fortunate to be able to rely on these two extraordinary diplomats in support of U.S. diplomacy amidst the regional challenges and opportunities we face,” Blinken said.
