Robert Frank Godec (born 1956) is an American diplomat who has served as the

United States ambassador to Thailand This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to Thailand. Thailand has had continuous bilateral relations with the United States since 1882. Relations were interrupted during World War II when Bangkok was occupied by Japanese forces. Norm ...

since October 2022. He formerly served as the

United States ambassador to Kenya United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...

from 2013 to 2019 and the

United States ambassador to Tunisia The following is a list of United States ambassadors to Tunisia. History: US Consul in Tunis * 1795–1796: Joseph Donaldson Jr. (Consul in Algiers) * 1795–1797: Samuel D. Heap (acting consul) * 1796–1797: Joseph Étienne Famin (French, ...

from 2006 to 2009. He also served as acting assistant secretary for the Bureau of African Affairs from January to September 2021.

Early life and education

Godec was born in

Rantoul, Illinois Rantoul is a village in northern Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 12,371 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area. History The community was named after Robert Rantoul, Jr., a ...

, in 1956. He earned a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in foreign affairs from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

in 1979 and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in international relations from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

Career

Godec is a career member of the

Senior Foreign Service The Senior Foreign Service (SFS) comprises the top four ranks of the United States Foreign Service. These ranks were created by the Foreign Service Act of 1980 and Executive Order 12293 in order to provide the Foreign Service with senior grades ...

with the rank of career minister; He has served in the service since 1985. He serves as senior coordinator for Afghanistan in the

Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration The Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) is a bureau within the United States Department of State. It has primary responsibility for formulating policies on population, refugees, and migration, and for administering U.S. refugee ...

at the

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...

. Previously, he was acting assistant secretary of state for the

Bureau of African Affairs The Bureau of African Affairs (AF) is part of the United States Department of State and is charged with advising the Secretary of State on matters of Sub-Saharan Africa. The bureau was established in 1958. It is headed by the Assistant Secretar ...

. He also served as principal deputy assistant secretary and as deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of African Affairs. Earlier, Godec was deputy commandant and international affairs advisor at the

National War College In the United States, the National War College (NWC) is a school within the National Defense University. It is housed in Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., the third-oldest Army post still active. History The National ...

. Godec also served as principal deputy coordinator for counterterrorism in the

Bureau of Counterterrorism The Bureau of Counterterrorism (CT) is a bureau of the United States Department of State. It coordinates all U.S. government efforts to improve counterterrorism cooperation with foreign governments and participates in the development, coordination ...

in the Department of State. Godec has also served as deputy assistant secretary of state in the

Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs The Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs (NEA), also known as the Bureau of Near East Asian Affairs, is an agency of the Department of State within the United States government that deals with U.S. foreign policy and diplomatic relations with the nati ...

and was deputy coordinator for the transition in Iraq. He served as acting deputy chief of mission and minister counselor for Economic Affairs in the U.S. embassy in

Pretoria, South Africa Pretoria ( ; ) is the administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into ...

. His other positions include economic counselor at U.S. embassy in Nairobi, Kenya; assistant office director for Thailand and Burma in the

Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs The Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs (EAP), formerly the Office of Chinese Affairs, is part of the United States Department of State and is charged with advising the secretary of state and under secretary of state for political affairs ...

; and director for southeast asian affairs at the

Office of the U.S. Trade Representative The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is an agency of the United States federal government responsible for developing and promoting United States foreign trade policies. Part of the Executive Office of the President, it i ...

United States ambassador to Tunisia

Godec had previously served as

. In December 2010 a number of leaked diplomatic cables written by Godec from Tunisia in 2008 and 2009 were published by '' Al Akhbar'' in

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

. Many of them were highly critical of the public and personal life of the Tunisian president,

Zine el Abidine Ben Ali Zine El Abidine Ben Ali (Tunisian Arabic: , ; 3 September 1936 – 19 September 2019), commonly known as Ben Ali or Ezzine, was a Tunisian politician who served as the second President of Tunisia from 1987 to 2011. In that year, during the Tun ...

, and his family. Godec mentioned high-level corruption, a "sclerotic" regime, and deep dislike or even hatred for the president's wife, Leila Trabelsi, and her family. There were later suggestions in the press that his comments could have fuelled the Tunisian Revolution, which began in December 2010 and led to the flight of Ben Ali to Saudi Arabia in January 2011.

United States ambassador to Kenya

Godec was

from 2013 to 2019. He was also Chargé d’Affaires a.i. at U.S. Embassy

Nairobi, Kenya Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a reference to the Nairobi Riv ...

in 2012.

United States ambassador to Thailand

On April 1, 2022, 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 ...

nominated Godec to be the

. Hearings on his nomination 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 July 13, 2022. The committee favorably reported his nomination to the Senate floor on August 3, 2022. He was confirmed by the 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 August 4, 2022. Godec presented his credentials to King

Vajiralongkorn Vajiralongkorn (born 28 July 1952) is King of Thailand. He is the tenth Thai monarch of the Chakri dynasty since ascending the throne in 2016 with the regnal name Rama X. The only son of King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX) and Queen Sirik ...

on October 7, 2022.

Awards and recognitions

Godec has won two Presidential Meritorious Service Awards, numerous Senior Performance Awards, and a

Distinguished Honor Award The Distinguished Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State and USAID. Similar versions of the same award existed for the former U.S. Information Agency and Arms Control and Disarmament Agency. It is presented in recogniti ...

Personal life

Since 1986, Godec has been married to Lori G. Magnusson. He speaks

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Godec, Robert Frank 1956 births Living people 21st-century American diplomats Ambassadors of the United States to Kenya Ambassadors of the United States to Thailand Ambassadors of the United States to Tunisia People from Rantoul, Illinois United States Foreign Service personnel University of Virginia alumni Yale University alumni