United States Ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein

History

Since 1997, the U.S. ambassador to Switzerland has also been accredited to the Principality of Liechtenstein. Appointed on February 10, 1997, Ambassador Madeleine M. Kunin served as the first United States Ambassador to Liechtenstein. She presented her credentials to Liechtenstein on March 14, 1997, which marked the beginning of the United States' diplomatic relations with the country. (Although the United States executed its first treaty with Liechtenstein in 1926, at the time Liechtenstein was represented by Switzerland).

Before 1997 it was understood that the rights of a U.S.–Swiss agreement also extended to citizens of Liechtenstein because it had yielded control of its foreign affairs to Switzerland. At the end of the 20th century, however, it "began pursuing independent membership in international organizations".

Political appointees

The position is generally held by a political appointee rather than a career Foreign Service Officers (FSOs); in the United States ambassadors are nominated by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. According to the American Foreign Service Association, only two career FSOs since 1960 have been appointed to the Swiss and Liechtenstein ambassadorship (both times were in the 1970s), whereas the remaining twenty ambassadors were political appointees, typically those known as "campaign bundlers" who raise large sums of money for presidential campaigns.

Recess appointments

The following were commissioned during a Senate recess and thus were recommissioned after their post-recess confirmations.

Other cases

Theodore Sedgwick Fay was nominated to be Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary on February 25, 1856, but his nomination was withdrawn before the Senate acted on it. George Schneider was commissioned during a Senate recess and he took the oath of office but did not proceed to post.