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As promised, here's the fulltext of Pope Benedict's welcome address to the new US ambassador to the Holy See, Miguel Diaz, delivered within the hour: Your Excellency, I am pleased to accept the Letters by which you are accredited Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America. I recall with pleasure my meeting with President Barack Obama and his family last July, and willingly reciprocate the kind greetings which you bring from him. I also take this occasion to express my confidence that diplomatic relations between the United States and the Holy See, formally initiated twenty-five years...

This one: Not this one: Congressman Joe Wilson (R-SC) appears to be a decent and honorable man. Part of his background includes military service (with four sons currently serving). His impassioned outburst during President Obama's healthcare speech may seem out of step with his character and his military discipline, but he vented/channeled what many frustrated Americans were shouting into their tv sets, while provoking a million-mob strong march to turn out in D.C.: You LIE. Not only is former ambassador Joe Wilson a liar; but the current president of the United States is one, too. Congressman Wilson broke decorum and...

The Obama Administration has named Jeffrey Bleich as US Ambassador to Australia. Does anyone have any dirt on him that would normally not be found in the mainstream media reports on his appointment? I'm in Australia and I'm trying to research this lib. Van Jones style dirt would be awesome but I'll settle for just super-lib stuff. Thanks.

ITALIAN MEDIA sources last weekend reported that the Holy See has rejected the possible appointment of Caroline Kennedy as US Ambassador to the Vatican. Milan-based daily Il Giornale, owned by the family of Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, said that the Vatican has rejected three possible choices by the Obama government for the post of US ambassador, including that of Caroline Kennedy, daughter of John F Kennedy. Il Giornale claims that the appointment of a new US ambassador to succeed Mary Ann Glendon has proved difficult because of the “strained” relations between the White House and the Holy See,...

Dr. Miguel Humberto Diaz Rome, Italy, Aug 27, 2009 / 12:03 pm (CNA).- This morning Dr. Miguel Diaz arrived in Rome with his family to begin serving in his new position as the U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See. Ambassador-designate Diaz said that he and his family are looking forward to the coming weeks and that he hopes to "deepen and expand upon the special relationship" between the U.S. and the Vatican.Dr. Miguel Humberto Diaz, arrived with his family this morning at Rome's Fiumicino International Airport. Prior to leaving the U.S. he was sworn in as ambassador on August...

(IsraelNN.com) The Swedish government distanced itself Thursday from an ambassador's condemnation of an article accusing Israeli troops of stealing Palestinian Authority Arabs' organs. The Swedish Foreign Ministry clarified that, unlike Ambassador to Israel Elisabet Borsiin Bonnier, it does not view the article as “appalling.” In addition to calling the article “shocking and appalling,” Bonnier said, “freedom of the press and freedom of expression are freedoms which carry a certain responsibility.”

Dr. Miguel Diaz Washington D.C., Jul 22, 2009 / 05:12 pm (CNA).- Dr. Miguel Diaz, President Obama's nominee to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, spoke at his confirmation hearing this morning in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In his remarks, Diaz pledged to "embrace President Obama and Secretary Clinton's diplomatic vision of leading through active listening and learning from others to seek common ground."Before delivering his remarks, Diaz was introduced by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), who described him as "a faithful Catholic...a gifted theologian...a respected scholar...a natural teacher...and a dedicated bridge-builder." According to...

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE ADDER, Iraq, July 16, 2009 – The U.S. ambassador to Iraq met with soldiers and leaders of Task Force Pathfinder here July 12 to thank them for their contributions and to discuss military support of provincial reconstruction teams in Iraq. U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Christopher R. Hill talks with Army Lt. Col. Michael Eastman, commander of Task Force Pathfinder, July 12, 2009, at Contingency Operating Base Adder near Nasiriyah, Iraq. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Mark Miranda  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “What we’re seeing is a crucial year, and it’s good to see the military...

When's the last time the Government of Israel made a decision that really and truly made you proud? This week's This Hyphenated Life column is dedicated to just such a moment. While Bibi's speech to the Arab world in Cairo last month might have done it for some, in most cases, this bloated government is not a source of inspiration. Yet, I had such a 'wow, that's terrific' reaction after hearing that Michael Oren was appointed as Israel's next ambassador to the United States. Rather than just echo the initial reactions, let's both provide perspective and look forward. Not only...

Valletta, Malta, Jul 8, 2009 / 12:14 am (CNA).- The editor of a Malta newspaper has commented on President Barack Obama’s choice of Prof. Doug Kmiec as ambassador to Malta, describing the appointment as “somewhat of a poisoned chalice” and noting the controversies concerning Kmiec and his campaign to elect Obama to the American presidency.Noel Grima, editor of the Malta Independent Online, said that though Kmiec was a Catholic and a pro-life person he has “fallen foul” of some Catholic leaders for his public stances on abortion and other pro-life issues.Noting Kmiec’s past as a law school dean, a law...

The U.S. Embassy in Tokyo has seen its share of luminaries in the ambassador's suite. Former Vice President Walter Mondale, former Senate Majority Leaders Mike Mansfield and Howard Baker and former House Speaker Tom Foley are among those who have brokered relations with a complex and critical ally in a region bristling with military and trade tensions.

Another Chicago area resident, Fay Hartog-Levin, a longtime Democratic activist and fund-raiser and an early career supporter of Barack Obama, was tapped Thursday to be ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Her husband, Daniel Levin, is the chairman of The Habitat Company and the founder of the East Bank Club. Valerie Jarrett, before joining the Obama White House as a senior advisor, was the President and Chief Executive Officer of The Habitat Company. Levin's cousins are Michigan Democrats, Sen. Carl Levin and his brother, Rep. Sandy Levin. A Winnetka resident, Hartog-Levin is a senior consultant at the Res Publica...

Washington D.C., Jul 2, 2009 / 01:25 am (CNA).- Catholic commentator George Weigel has written an “open letter” to Dr. Miguel Diaz, President Obama’s nominated ambassador to the Holy See, advising him to focus on common agreement between the Vatican and the United States in his “difficult task.”Writing in his weekly column, Weigel suggested Diaz, a theology professor at St. John’s University and the College of St. Benedict in Minnesota, cultivate intellectual contacts during his diplomatic work. According to Weigel—who is biographer of the late Pope John Paul II—previous Ambassadors Jim Nicholson and Mary Ann Glendon were “particularly successful”...

If all goes according to plan, Colorado businessman Vinai Thummalapally will soon be moving to a Central American tourist paradise to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Belize. Thummalapally was President Obama's roommate at Occidental College in 1979. As Barbara and Vinai Thummalapally described it to the Colorado Springs Gazette, they "used to party with (the president) in college. He was the guy who'd drink a few beers, maybe take a toke, stay up until 4 a.m. then excuse himself to crank out an 'A' paper due that morning. ... He was Barry, the...

Rep. Peter King in January turned down an offer from President Barack Obama to be ambassador to Ireland, according to a source with knowledge of the discussions. Obama Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel called King the week before the inauguration with the offer, said the source, who declined to be identified. King turned it down, the source said, because he couldn't go along with Obama foreign policy. King also was reluctant to live so far away from his family. King, who often touts his Irish heritage, declined to comment Tuesday. "I had a lot of conversations with Rahm Emanuel and...

WASHINGTON, June 3, 2009 – Having been part of their tightly knit community all her life, Teresa Vance always has had an interest in military families. Her father made a career out of the Army, serving in World War II and Korea. Her husband was a career surface warfare officer in the Navy, and her son spent four years in the Marine Corps. The city commission of Enid, Okla., has appointed Teresa Vance as the city’s official ambassador to military families. Vance was born into an Army family and married a career naval officer. Courtesy photo   (Click photo for...

Professor Miguel H. Diaz, PhD Washington D.C., May 28, 2009 / 01:35 am (CNA).- In a surprising move, President Barack Obama announced on Wednesday evening that Miguel H. Diaz, Ph.D., a 45 year old lay Liberation theologian born in Havana (Cuba) is his pick to become the United States Ambassador to the Holy See.An associate professor of theology at St. John's University and the College of Saint Benedict in Minnesota, Diaz, a strong Obama supporter and father of four, earned his bachelor’s degree from St. Thomas University in Miami, Fla., and his master’s and doctorate in theology from the...

A Hispanic Roman Catholic theologian who advised Barack Obama's presidential campaign is the Obama administration's choice to serve as U.S. ambassador to the Vatican. The White House announced Wednesday it plans to nominate Miguel H. Diaz, an associate professor of theology at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University in Collegeville, Minn., for the post. Diaz, 45, a Cuban-American, was a member of the Obama campaign's Catholic advisory board. Diaz was among 26 Catholics who signed a statement supporting the nomination of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius...

President Obama’s campaign manager, David Plouffe, said that Governor Huntsman makes him a "wee bit queasy.” He is referring to Huntsman supposedly being a legitimate challenger to President Obama in 2012/2016. After Plouffe’s comment Huntsman got a lot of media play, which has intensified with him being picked as the new ambassador to China. The Democrats know exactly what they are doing placing a moderate-squishy Republican in the limelight. I guess the Dems apparent fear is supposed to make us start screaming to have Huntsman as the Republican nominee in 2012. They media think the message from his ambassadorship is...

Former President Bill Clinton, who has committed his philanthropic efforts to helping hurricane ravaged Haiti, has been named a special envoy to the Caribbean nation on behalf of the United Nations. The honor comes two months after Clinton visited Haiti along with U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in an effort to raise global attention to the country's effort to rebuild following a year of natural disasters that wreaked havoc on the Haitian economy, its people and its already fragile landscape. The four back-to-back storms left almost 800 dead and created nearly $1 billion in damage.

Breaking News.

Some call him the new Moshe Arens, others compare him to Benjamin Netanyahu - either way Michael Oren has become one of Israel's most prominent English speakers since being named the new ambassador to the United States this week. While many in the local Anglo community celebrated their fellow immigrant's success, friends and companions reminisced this week about different aspects of the eclectic scholar-turned-diplomat's personality. Jewish Agency spokesman Michael Jankelowitz met him in the early 1980s, while Oren was working on his Ph.D. at Princeton University. Jankelowitz, who was an emissary for American campus activity at the time, says Oren...

Speculation continues over who President Barack Obama might pick as U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, with concern that he may choose a pro-abortion candidate in line with his own radical anti-life position.But is that possible? And how would the Vatican respond? Like any other state, the Vatican does not impose on another state that an ambassador hold certain views, nor does it generally carry out a vetting process into a person’s beliefs and ideas. But it does require that a candidate be “in good standing” within his or her faith community.Diplomats in Rome said what that means depends on...

WASHINGTON, April 28, 2009 – Army Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry retired here today, 24 hours before being sworn in as the U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan. Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, dons a U.S. Army ball cap at the conclusion of the retirement ceremony for Army Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, Pentagon, Hall of Heroes, April 28, 2009. Eikenberry retires after 35 years of service and will be sworn in as the new U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan in a ceremony tomorrow by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. DoD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st...

Damascus - Michel al-Khoury, the first Lebanese ambassador to Syria, arrived in Damascus Monday, in a further step toward normal diplomatic relations between the two countries. 'I am very happy to be the representative of my country in Syrian territory,' Khoury told the German News Agency dpa on Monday. 'I am now waiting for an appointment to present my credentials to President Bashar al-Assad.' Representatives of the Syrian Foreign Ministry and Nasri al-Khoury, head of the High Syrian-Lebanese Council, greeted the Lebanese ambassador to Syria at the border. Lebanon opened its embassy in Damascus in mid-March, but no Syrian officials...

Israel has recalled its ambassador to Switzerland after Swiss President Hans-Rudolf Merz met with Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmedinejad. The meeting happened on the sidelines of a U.N. racism conference that Israel says had an anti-Israeli agenda. Israel's government saw the meeting between the Swiss leader and Mahmoud Ahmedinejad as an insult and recalled its ambassador to Switzerland to show its displeasure. Mr. Ahmedinejad has called for the destruction of Israel and has suggested the Holocaust, in which six million Jews perished, did not happen. Israel: Swiss decision 'a mistake' Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor tells VOA Israel considers Switzerland...

Well, at least they all paid their taxes. At least we think so. That’s apparently the only non-controversial thing about President Obama’s personnel choices: one, a a militant gay rights activist appointed to the Faith-Based Initiatives Advisory Council, and three more pro-choice Catholic picks for ambassador to the Vatican who have all reportedly been rejected. I spoke with Dr. Bill Donohue, President and CEO of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, the nation's largest Catholic civil rights organization, about these nominations, appointments and behind-the-scenes maneuvers. Although Donahue could not give names of those rejected by the church, he...

As President Barack Obama continues to focus on his political base and push through policies that are anathema to the pro-life movement, he is having difficulty finding a suitable candidate to represent his administration at the Vatican. According to Massimo Franco, author of "Parallel Empires," a recently published book on U.S.-Vatican relations, the Obama administration has put forward three candidates for consideration but each of them have been deemed insufficiently pro-life by the Vatican. One of the few conditions the Vatican places on diplomats accredited to the Holy See is that they hold pro-life views in line with Church teaching....

WASHINGTON, March 26, 2009 – Army Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, former top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, told a Senate committee today he'll assume the ambassadorship there with a clear recognition that success in both Afghanistan and Pakistan is vital to U.S. national security.Eikenberry, President Barack Obama’s nominee as ambassador to Afghanistan, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee his career has centered around Afghanistan since a terrorist-comandeered aircraft hit the Pentagon just below where he was working on 9/11. “Afghanistan is where the cold-blooded September the 11th, 2001, attacks upon the United States were conceived and they were directed,” he...

Washington, DC (Sports Network) - Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney was nominated to be the U.S. ambassador to Ireland by President Barack Obama on Tuesday. Rooney, 76, is a lifelong Republican, but he endorsed Obama in Pennsylvania's Democratic primary and later campaigned for him in western Pennsylvania during the general election. "I am honored and grateful that such a dedicated and accomplished individual has agreed to serve as the representative of the United States to the Irish people," said Obama. "Dan Rooney is an unwavering supporter of Irish peace, culture, and education, and I have every confidence that he and...

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) Rumors are swirling that the man most identified with the Pittsburgh Steelers is about to be named Ambassador to Ireland. Dan Rooney has had a long interest in the land of his grandparents and this appointment would cap it off. Even before Barack Obama was sworn in as president, KDKA-TV Political Editor Jon Delano reported that Rooney was a possible candidate to be Ambassador to Ireland. Now just days before St. Patrick's Day, a time when such appointments are often announced, the unofficial word out of Washington is the man whose team won the Super Bowl could himself...

The Foreign Ministry said Friday it had closed its embassy after the government of this overwhelmingly Muslim West African nation asked the Israeli ambassador and his staff to leave. The move came after Mauritania's military junta recalled its own ambassador from Israel last month. In January, Mauritania said it was suspending ties with Israel over its military offensive against Hamas in Gaza. "Following the Mauritanian government's decision, on January 16th 2009, to freeze diplomatic relations with Israel, and at its request, Israel will close its embassy in Nouakchott as of today," Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said in a...

The always compelling Steve Clemons has an intriguing suggestion for President-elect Barack Obama: send Caroline Kennedy to the Court of James's as the United States ambassador to the United Kingdom. Kennedy, of course, is currently going hell for leather to get Hillary Clinton's seat in the Senate. But she's already encountering problems. The electorate - Governor David Paterson - is said to be cheesed off at the presumptuousness of the way she's going about landing the job. Her ties to Mayor Michael Bloomberg are problematic. And then there's the small issue of her never having been elected to anything in...

On the outside chance that anyone thought that Susan Rice might be the exception to the rule of wrong thinking that characterizes Barack Obama's foreign policy team -- well, think again. Obama's nominee to serve as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations had this to say in 2003 after Secretary of State Colin Powell made a wholly absurd presentation to a plenary session of the United Nations Security Council regarding the supposed threat posed by those imaginary Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. "I think he (Powell) has proved that Iraq has these weapons and is hiding them," said Rice,...

With the nominations of Clinton as Secretary of State and Rice as United Nations Ambassador, Obama’s global agenda is becoming clear. He wants to dramatically expand the power of the U.N., a corrupt global institution that is infested with spies for foreign and hostile interests. Obama’s record in the Senate included sponsorship of the pro-U.N. Global Poverty Act and co-sponsorship of the Jubilee Act. These two foreign aid spending measures alone would cost $920 billion to implement. Obama also wants to pass several controversial U.N. treaties and says that he would consider joining the International Criminal Court, a U.N. institution...

Ambassador to the Holy See is not like most ambassadorships. For starters, the First Amendment notwithstanding, it is the only position in the U.S. government that involves formal recognition of religion. Ambassadors are not accredited to the Vatican City-State, the 103 acres on the west bank of the Tiber that give territorial reality to papal independence. Ambassadors are accredited to the Holy See, that is, to the Pope in his capacity as leader of the Catholic Church. This was the grounds for opposition to the establishment of formal diplomatic relations from both conservative, evangelical Christians and from the ACLU, two...

YOUR REMARKS IN BAD TASTE, INJURIOUS TO KENYA/US BILATERAL RELATIONS Mr. Senator, 1. I hereby wish to communicate to you the displeasure and disappointment of the Government of Kenya, the Kenya Embassy, Washington D.C. and the majority of Kenyans with regards to your recent utterances while in Kenya. Your unprovoked and uncalled for statements were in bad taste, particularly given that your visit was very well arranged in advance with full briefings given to your office in Washington D.C. by the Kenya Embassy. And, rather than nurture and strengthen the existing cordial and mutually beneficial relations between USA and Kenya,...

KHYBER AGENCY: The abducted Afghan ambassador designate to Pakistan, Abdul Khaliq Farahi Monday reached Peshawar after being released, official sources said. Earlier, the Afghan Embassy had also confirmed his release. The Afghan envoy was kidnapped on September 22 from Hayatabad area in Peshawar. His driver was killed by the kidnappers.

via translation - ALERT - An Afghan consul kidnapped in Pakistan, his driver killed PESHAWAR (Pakistan) - The Consul General of Afghanistan in Peshawar, northwestern Pakistan, was kidnapped Monday by unidentified attackers who killed his driver in an ambush, announced the Afghan consulate.

via translation - ALERT - Pakistan: the Czech ambassador was killed PRAGUE - The Czech Republic's ambassador to Pakistan, which had called for help from the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad shortly after the attack Saturday, died Sunday announced in Prague public television CT 24.

VENEZUELAN President Hugo Chavez expelled the US envoy to Caracas today and threatened to halt crude exports to the US on a day he highlighted the recent arrival of two Russian Tu-160 strategic bombers. Mr Chavez today ordered US ambassador Patrick Duddy to leave the country within 72 hours, in a move he described as an act of solidarity with Venezuela's ally Bolivia, which also expelled its US envoy. "Starting at this moment the Yankee ambassador in Caracas has 72 hours to leave Venezuela," Mr Chavez said at a public event in the port city of Puerto Cabello, 120km west...

The U.S. ambassador to Russia has told a Russian daily that Washington strongly urged Georgia not to invade its breakaway province of South Ossetia . . . .

South Texas political legend Anne Legendre Armstrong, 80, died of cancer in a Houston hospice early this morning, her office has confirmed. Armstrong, a former U.S. Ambassador to Great Britain and sitting Kenedy County Commissioner, played a conquering role in Republican politics as a national leader of the party, serving as a cabinet-level adviser to Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford and an adviser to Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush on foreign intelligence. As news of her death spread among close friends and political associates Wednesday morning, Vice President Dick Cheney, a regular visitor to the Armstrong Ranch...

British Journalist to Try to Make Citizen's Arrest of John Bolton During U.K. Trip Wednesday, May 28, 2008 John Bolton may need some additional protection at his speech Wednesday evening in Wales, United Kingdom, as a journalist from the Guardian newspaper plans on making a citizen's arrest of the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton is appearing at the Hay Literary Festival in Wales to promote his new book, "Surrender Is Not an Option: Defending America at the United Nations." The Telegraph newspaper reports that George Monbiot wants to arrest Bolton for war crimes as the ambassador prepares...

BAGHDAD (AP) - The U.S. ambassador to Iraq said Saturday that al-Qaida's network in the country has never been closer to defeat, and he praised Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for his moves to rein in Shiite and Sunni militant groups. Ryan Crocker's comments came as Iraqi forces have been conducting crackdowns on al-Qaida militants in the northern city of Mosul and on Shiite militiamen in the southern city of Basra. Thousands of Iraqi forces also moved into the Shiite militia stronghold of Sadr City in Baghdad last week imposing control for the first time in years. But truces with the...

BAGHDAD - The U.S. ambassador to Iraq said Saturday that al-Qaida's network in the country has never been closer to defeat, and he praised Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for his moves to rein in Shiite and Sunni militant groups. Ryan Crocker's comments came as Iraqi forces have been conducting crackdowns on al-Qaida militants in the northern city of Mosul and on Shiite militiamen in the southern city of Basra. Thousands of Iraqi forces also moved into the Shiite militia stronghold of Sadr City in Baghdad last week imposing control for the first time in years. But truces with the powerful...

Bahrain will name a Jewish ambassador to the United States, a report said. Huda Azar Nunu, a Jewish woman who is a lawmaker in Bahrain's upper house, will be named to the Washington position, according to a report this week in A Sharq al-Awsat, a Saudi-owned pan-Arab daily published in London. "The sources denied that the appointment of Nunu as a woman and a Jew is a public relations campaign by Bahrain in the West, emphasizing that Huda Nunu has proven her qualifications, whether through her membership in the Consultative Council or through her work in human rights associations, of...

(IsraelNN.com) "When Israel's ideology will collapse, and after we take Jerusalem, Israel's ideology will collapse altogether, and then we will proceed with our own ideology, inshallah [if Allah wills], and we will throw them out of all of Palestine." So said Abbas Zaki, the Palestinian Authority's ambassador to Lebanon on Lebanese television last week, according to a translation by MEMRI (Middle East Media Research Institute). Expressing strong support for terror attacks against Israel, Zaki said, "We believe wholeheartedly that the Right of Return [of millions of Arabs and their descendants who left Israel in 1948 and 1967 -ed.] is guaranteed...

Belarus expels US ambassador By YURAS KARMANAU, Associated Press Writer The Belarusian Foreign Ministry on Friday demanded that the U.S. ambassador leave the country and recalled its ambassador to the U.S. over Washington's economic sanctions against the ex-Soviet nation. State Department spokesman Tom Casey said the United States was "deeply disappointed" by the move. "If they do not wish our ambassador to remain in country, our ambassador will leave," Casey said. "They have said they are recalling their ambassador, which is a very good thing, because their ambassador would certainly not be welcome here." It was not immediately clear whether...

VATICAN CITY, FEB. 29, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Here is the address Benedict XVI gave today in English upon receiving in audience Mary Ann Glendon, the new ambassador of the United States to the Holy See. * * * Your Excellency, It is a pleasure for me to accept the Letters by which you are accredited Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America and to offer my cordial good wishes as you take up your new responsibilities in the service of your country. I am confident that the knowledge and experience born of your distinguished association with the work...