Mary Catherine Phee, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service who had previously served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia, is among seven individuals nominated to fill key roles in the State Department. Phee currently serves as Principal Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation at the State Department. (Photo: C-SPAN)
Tadias Magazine
By Tadias Staff
Updated: April 15th, 2021
New York (TADIAS) — Today President Joe Biden announced his intent to nominate Mary Catherine Phee as the next U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs and Member of the Board of Directors of the African Development Foundation.
In a press release the White House named Ambassador Phee – a career member of the Senior Foreign Service who had previously served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia – among seven individuals nominated to fill key roles in the State Department.
According to the White House:
Mary Catherine Phee, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Minister Counselor, currently serves as Principal Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation at the State Department. She was U.S. Ambassador to South Sudan from 2015 to 2017. Previously, she served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and as Chief of Staff in the Office of the Special Envoy for Sudan and South Sudan. She also was the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs and Deputy Security Council Coordinator at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, handling UN engagement in Africa for both portfolios. Earlier in her career, Phee served as Director for Iraq at the National Security Council and as Senior Civilian Representative of the Coalition Provisional Authority to Maysan Province, Iraq. She began her career in Amman, Jordan and also worked at U.S. Embassies in Cairo, Egypt and Kuwait City, Kuwait. She received the Robert C. Frasure Memorial Award for conflict resolution and peacemaking, the James A. Baker, III-C. Howard Wilkins, Jr. Award for Outstanding Deputy Chief of Mission, the Secretary of Defense Meritorious Civilian Service Award, the Order of the British Empire Award, and a Presidential Rank Award. She speaks Arabic. A native of Chicago, she is a graduate of Indiana University and holds a Master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
Click here to read the full press release »
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