US to appoint Robert Ford as top envoy to Syria, ending five-year hiatus
Robert Ford
Robert Stephen Ford, the former US deputy head of diplomatic mission to Bahrain, is to be the next US ambassador to Syria, putting an end to a five-year hiatus.
Washington has not appointed an ambassador in Damascus since then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called back Margaret Scobey in February 2005 in response to the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and amid tensions between the two countries mainly over issues relating to Iraq and Lebanon. “US Middle East envoy George Mitchell gave the name of the new US ambassador to Syria in a meeting with Syrian President Bashar Assad,” the Lebanese daily An-Nahar said on Saturday, quoting unnamed American sources. Mitchell was in Damascus last week as part of a tour in the region that saw him visit several capitals. Syria has repeatedly urged the Americans to name an ambassador to help address the numerous issues pending between the two countries. Damascus had refused to hold any meeting between the US attaché at the embassy and high Syrian officials. Ford, who speaks Arabic fluently, is currently the deputy ambassador to Iraq. He served as the US envoy to Algeria from 2006 to 2008, and is considered to be an expert in Mideast affairs.
Ford is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service. He entered the service in 1985 and has been stationed in Izmir, Cairo, Algiers, and Yaoundé before moving in 2001 to Bahrain as deputy to Ambassador Ronald E. Neumann who was later called to serve in Iraq. Ford too was moved to Iraq in 2002, but he remained officially named to Manama until 2004. He played a major role in explaining US views on post-September 11 developments and interacting with Arabs, appearing on Bahrain TV to address viewers in Arabic. He was appointed Political Counselor to the US embassy in Baghdad from 2004 until 2006. He subsequently served as US ambassador to Algeria from August 2006 until June 2008. Ford received his Master of Arts in 1983 from Johns Hopkins University. He is a recipient of several Department of State awards, including the 2005 James Clement Dunn Award for outstanding work at the mid-level in the Foreign Service as well as three Superior Honor Awards and two Meritorious Honor Awards.
