The United States President Joe Biden has nominated Richard Mills Jr. as the United States Ambassador to Nigeria.
Mr. Mills replaces Mary Beth Leonard who was appointed the envoy to Nigeria by President Donald Trump on 24 June 2019.
The new ambassador currently serves as the US Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations and is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Minister-Counselor.
He had served in various positions at different foreign missions including being:
- The US Ambassador to Armenia.
- The Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires at the US Mission to Canada.
- The Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon.
- The Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires ad interim at the US Embassy in Valetta, Malta.
- The Senior Democracy Advisor at the US Embassy Baghdad, Iraq.
- The Political Counselor at the US Embassy in London, England.
- And the Political Officer at the US Mission to the United Nations.
According to a statement on the White House website, Mr. Mills was an associate attorney in Washington, D.C.before joining the Foreign Service.
He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, a Juris Doctor from the University of Texas School of Law, and a Master’s in National Security Policy from the National Defense University.
He speaks French and Russian.
