Bridget Ann Brink (born 1970) is an American diplomat who served as the

United States ambassador to Ukraine The ambassador of the United States to Ukraine is the highest-ranking diplomatic position of the United States in Ukraine. The U.S. ambassadors are nominated by the President of the United States, president to serve as the country's diplomat, d ...

from 2022 to 2025. A member of the

United States Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carr ...

, she previously served as the United States ambassador to Slovakia from 2019 until 2022 and has held various positions in the State Department since 1996. In April 2022, she was nominated by President

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

to be the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine and presented her credentials to President

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former entertainer who has served as the sixth and current president of Ukraine since 2019. He took office five years after the start of the Russo-Ukraini ...

in May 2022. Brink served in her post during the first three years of the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...

, signaling support for Ukraine in the conflict and advocating for the U.S. to provide military aid. She resigned during President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

's second term over disagreements with his administration's shift towards Russia and away from Ukraine. In June 2025, she announced her campaign for Congress in the 2026 election in Michigan's 7th congressional district. She is a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life and education

Brink is a native of

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, the daughter of John and Gwen Brink.U.S. Senate, "Statement of Bridget A. Brink Ambassador-Nominee to the Slovak Republic Senate Foreign Relations Committee Thursday, May 16, 2019", accessed Nov. 5, 2019

/ref> She graduated from East Grand Rapids High School in 1987. Brink earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from

Kenyon College Kenyon College ( ) is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1824 by Episcopal Bishop Philander Chase. It is the oldest private instituti ...

and a master's in international relations and

political theory Political philosophy studies the theoretical and conceptual foundations of politics. It examines the nature, scope, and legitimacy of political institutions, such as states. This field investigates different forms of government, ranging from d ...

from the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

(LSE).U.S. Department of State, Biography of Bridget A. Brink, accessed Nov. 5, 2019

/ref>

Career

After joining the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy of the United State ...

in 1996, Brink served as a consular political officer in the U.S. Embassy in

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

from 1997 to 1999. She then served as a

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

desk officer until 2002, and as a special assistant for Europe to the

Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs The under secretary of state for political affairs is currently the fourth-ranking position in the United States Department of State, after the United States Secretary of State, secretary, the United States Deputy Secretary of State, deputy secre ...

until 2004. From 2005 to 2008, Brink served as political-economic chief in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

. From 2008 to 2009, Brink served as the deputy director for southern European affairs at the U.S. Department of State. She then joined the

United States National Security Council The United States National Security Council (NSC) is the national security council used by the president of the United States for consideration of national security, military, and Foreign relations of the United States, foreign policy matter ...

and from 2009 to 2010, she served as director for the Aegean and

South Caucasus The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and West Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Armenia, ...

, where she helped coordinate U.S. foreign policy and advance U.S. interests with

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

, Cyprus,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

, and

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

. In 2011, Brink returned to Georgia as deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in

. Brink served as

deputy chief of mission A deputy chief of mission (DCM, in Europe the term deputy head of mission – DHoM or DHM is used instead) is the number-two diplomat assigned to an embassy or other diplomatic mission. The deputy chief of mission is usually considered the second ...

at the U.S. Embassy in Tashkent,

Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...

from 2014 until August 2015, when she became deputy assistant secretary in the

Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs The Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs (EUR) is part of the United States Department of State, charged with implementing U.S. foreign policy and promoting U.S. interests in Europe and Eurasia (which it defines as being Europe, Turkey, Cypr ...

. In 2018, ''

Foreign Policy Foreign policy, also known as external policy, is the set of strategies and actions a State (polity), state employs in its interactions with other states, unions, and international entities. It encompasses a wide range of objectives, includ ...

'' reported that Brink was slated to be nominated as the US ambassador to Georgia, but the

Georgian Dream Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia (GD), also colloquially known as the Kotsebi, is a Conservatism, conservative and populism, populist List of political parties in Georgia (country), political party in Georgia (country), Georgia, which has ...

government rebuffed her due to her alleged predisposition toward former Georgian President and then-opposition leader

Mikheil Saakashvili Mikheil "Misha" Saakashvili (born 21 December 1967) is a Georgian and Ukrainian politician and jurist. He was the third president of Georgia for two consecutive terms from 25 January 2004 to 17 November 2013. He is the founder and former chair ...

U.S. ambassador to Slovakia

President

nominated Brink to become the ambassador to

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

. Hearings were held before the

Senate Foreign Relations Committee The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the U.S. Senate charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. It is generally responsible for authorizing and overseeing foreign a ...

on May 16, 2019. The committee favorably reported her nomination to the Senate floor on May 22, 2019. Brink was confirmed by the entire Senate via

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "by live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by respondin ...

on May 23, 2019. Brink presented her credentials to President

Zuzana Čaputová Zuzana Čaputová (; Strapáková; born 21 June 1973) is a Slovak politician, lawyer and environmental activist who served as the fifth president of Slovakia from 2019 to 2024. Čaputová is the first woman to hold the presidency, as well as the ...

on August 20, 2019.

U.S. ambassador to Ukraine

In February 2022, it was reported that President

would nominate Brink as the

. On April 25, 2022, Brink was nominated to serve in that position. Hearings took place on May 10, 2022, before the

. On May 18, 2022, the committee reported her favorably to the Senate floor. Her nomination process was fast-tracked and she was unanimously confirmed by the entire Senate via voice vote later that day. She presented her credentials on May 30, 2022, and took office during the

Russian invasion of Ukraine

Brink has supported

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

throughout the

. On July 22, 2022, Brink stated that the United States would continue to "support Ukraine for as long as it takes". She made these statements after the White House announced they would send $270 million for military assistance to Ukraine. On July 26, she met with Jonathan Markovitch, the Chief Rabbi of

Kyiv Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

. In December, it was reported that she had met with President Zelensky in person to securely coordinate his 9.5 hour visit to

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, on December 23, 2022. In April 2025, Brink made a social media post about a recent missile strike on Kryvyi Rih. Afterward, Brink received a sharp rebuke from Zelensky for omitting Russia's role in the strike. Brink announced her intention to step down as ambassador on April 10, 2025, effective on April 21. She reportedly chose to resign due to disagreements with the Trump administration, pressure from President Zelenskyy, and the toll of working in a war zone away from her family for nearly three years. Brink's resignation was seen as another upheaval amidst the State Department's reorientation away from Ukraine and towards Russia.

2026 congressional campaign

On June 18, 2025, Brink announced that she would run in the Democratic primary for the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

in , with the goal of challenging Republican incumbent Tom Barrett in 2026.

Personal life

She is the mother of two boys, and her husband, Nicholas Higgins, also works for the U.S. Foreign Service. Brink speaks English,

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

, Georgian and French.

References

External links

Campaign website
* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Brink, Bridget A. 1970 births Living people 21st-century American diplomats 21st-century American women civil servants Alumni of the London School of Economics Ambassadors of the United States to Slovakia Ambassadors of the United States to Ukraine American women ambassadors Biden administration personnel Date of birth missing (living people) Diplomats from Michigan First Trump administration personnel Kenyon College alumni Michigan Democrats People from East Grand Rapids, Michigan Place of birth missing (living people) Second Trump administration personnel United States Foreign Service personnel