The United States has the second largest number of active diplomatic posts of any country in the world after the People's Republic of China, including 272 bilateral posts (embassies and consulates) in 174 countries, as well as 11 permanent missions to international organizations and seven other posts (as of May 2025). It maintains "interest sections" (in other states' embassies) in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

and

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

History

In December 1777,

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

became the first nation to seek diplomatic relations with the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and together they maintain the United States' longest unbroken treaty.

Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin (April 17, 1790) was an American polymath: a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and Political philosophy, political philosopher.#britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the m ...

established the first overseas mission of the United States in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1779. On April 19, 1782,

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

was received by the States-General and the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

as they were the first country, together with Morocco and France, to recognize the United States as an independent government. John Adams then became the first U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands and the house that he had purchased there, at Fluwelen Burgwal 18 in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

, became the first U.S. embassy in the world. In the period following the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

sent a number of close advisers, including

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

Francis Dana Francis Dana (June 13, 1743 – April 25, 1811) was an American Founding Father, lawyer, jurist, and statesman from Massachusetts. He served as a delegate to the Continental Congress in 1777–1778 and 1784. A signer of the Articles of Confederat ...

, and

John Jay John Jay (, 1745 – May 17, 1829) was an American statesman, diplomat, signatory of the Treaty of Paris (1783), Treaty of Paris, and a Founding Father of the United States. He served from 1789 to 1795 as the first chief justice of the United ...

, to the courts of European potentates in order to garner recognition of U.S. independence, with mixed results. The first overseas consulate of the fledgling United States was founded in 1790 in Liverpool, Great Britain, by James Maury Jr., who was appointed by Washington. Maury held the post from 1790 to 1829. Liverpool was at the time Britain's leading port for transatlantic commerce and therefore of great economic importance to the

. President George Washington, on November 19, 1792, nominated Benjamin Joy of Newbury Port as the first U.S. Consul to Kolkata (then Calcutta), India. Joy was not recognized as consul by the British East India Company but was permitted to "reside here as a Commercial Agent subject to the Civil and Criminal Jurisdiction of this Country." The United States' first owned overseas property is the American Legation in Tangier, which was a gift of the

Sultan of Morocco This is a list of rulers of Morocco since 789. The common and formal titles of these rulers has varied, depending on the time period. Since 1957, the designation King has been used. The present King of Morocco is Mohammed VI of Morocco, Mohammed ...

in 1821. In general during the nineteenth century, the United States' diplomatic activities were done on a minimal budget. The U.S. owned no property abroad and provided no official residences for its foreign envoys, paid them a minimal salary, and gave them the rank of ministers rather than ambassadors who represented the

great power A great power is a sovereign state that is recognized as having the ability and expertise to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength, as well as diplomatic and soft power ...

s—a position which the U.S. only achieved towards the end of the nineteenth century. In the latter half of the nineteenth century, the State Department was concerned with expanding commercial ties in Asia, establishing

Liberia Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to Guinea–Liberia border, its north, Ivory Coast to Ivory Coast–Lib ...

, foiling

diplomatic recognition Diplomatic recognition in international law is a unilateral declarative political act of a state that acknowledges an act or status of another state or government in control of a state (may be also a recognized state). Recognition can be acc ...

of the

Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), also known as the Confederate States (C.S.), the Confederacy, or Dixieland, was an List of historical unrecognized states and dependencies, unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United State ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, and securing its presence in North America. The Confederacy had diplomatic missions in the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...

, Russia, Mexico, and Spain, and consular missions in Ireland, Canada, Cuba, Italy,

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

, and Nassau and New Providence. The United States' global prominence became evident in the twentieth century, and the State Department was required to invest in a large network of diplomatic missions to manage its bilateral and multilateral relations.

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 ...

Websites of U.S. Embassies, Consulates, and Diplomatic Missions
. Accessed 29 August 2008. The wave of overseas construction began with the creation of the State Department's Foreign Service Buildings Commission in 1926. Following the 1984 US embassy bombing in Beirut, and a 1985 report by Admiral Bobby Ray Inman, new guidelines for American diplomatic buildings focusing on security were issued. It advised that facilities should be located within a single, well-defended site, away from heavily populated areas. As of 2024, America had the two largest embassy complexes in the world, in Baghdad and

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 ...

Current missions

Africa

The U.S. has embassies in all the African states it recognizes with the exceptions of

Guinea-Bissau Guinea-Bissau, officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, is a country in West Africa that covers with an estimated population of 2,026,778. It borders Senegal to Guinea-Bissau–Senegal border, its north and Guinea to Guinea–Guinea-Bissau b ...

(where it maintains a Liaison office), the

Comoros The Comoros, officially the Union of the Comoros, is an archipelagic country made up of three islands in Southeastern Africa, located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city is Moroni, ...

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé and Príncipe, officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, is an island country in the Gulf of Guinea, off the western equatorial coast of Central Africa. It consists of two archipelagos around the two main isla ...

, and

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

. File:American embassy in Antananarivo, Madagascar.jpg, Embassy in Antananarivo File:American Embassy in Dar Es Salaam.jpg, Embassy in Dar es Salaam File:Embassy of the United States in Swaziland.jpg, Embassy in Mbabane File:Chancery.jpg, Embassy in Libreville File:U.S. Embassy in Lomé.png, Embassy in Lomé File:US Embassy Nairobi.jpg, Embassy in Nairobi File:The_U.S._Embassy_in_Pretoria_Glows_at_Night.jpg, Embassy in Pretoria File:Yaoundé ambaixada EUA.jpg, Embassy in Yaoundé

America

The U.S. has embassies in all states in the American continent with the exceptions of Antigua & Barbuda (where it has a consular agency),

Dominica Dominica, officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. It is part of the Windward Islands chain in the Lesser Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean Sea. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of t ...

Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Kitts and Nevis, officially the Federation of Saint Christopher (St Kitts) and Nevis, is an island country consisting of the two islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis, both located in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands chain of the Less ...

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. Part of the Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent (Saint Vincent and the Grenadines), Saint Vincent ...

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, sometimes known simply as Saint Vincent or SVG, is an island country in the eastern Caribbean. It is located in the southeast Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, which lie in the West Indies, at the south ...

, and

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

. File:US Embassy in Bogota, Colombia.jpg, Embassy in Bogotá File:Embaixada USA Brasil 01.jpg, Embassy in Brasília File:Consulado-Geral dos Estados Unidos no Recife.jpg, Consulate-General in Recife File:Consulado-Geral EUA Rio de Janeiro.jpg, Consulate-General in Rio de Janeiro File:American Embassy in Bridgetown-2.jpg, Embassy in Bridgetown File:Oficinas de la Embajada de Estados Unidos en Buenos Aires.jpg, Embassy in Buenos Aires File:U.S. Flag Flaps Outside U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba (25998479275).jpg, Embassy in Havana File:US Embassy in La Paz.jpg, Embassy in La Paz File:US Embassy light in blue and yellow to express solidarity with Ukraine.jpg, Embassy in Lima File:USEmbassyDF.JPG, Embassy in Mexico City File:Chancery (3820495681).jpg, Embassy in Montevideo File:American Embassy in Ottawa.jpg, Embassy in Ottawa File:US Consulate-General in Quebec City-3.jpg, Consulate-General in

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

File:Consulate of the United States in Toronto.JPG, Consulate-General in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

File:US Embassy in Panama City with blue & yellow light stand firm in the support of Ukraine.jpg, Embassy in Panama City File:paramaribo district 14.jpg, Embassy in Paramaribo File:USEmbassy PortofSpain.jpg, Embassy in Port of Spain File:U.S. Embassy in Ecuador.jpg, Embassy in Quito File:American Embassy in San Jose.jpg, Embassy in San José File:Embassy of the United States of America in San Salvador, El Salvador.jpg, Embassy in San Salvador File:US Embassy in Santiago.jpg, Embassy in Santiago de Chile File:US Embassy in Tegucigapa 2.jpg, Embassy in Tegucigalpa

Asia

The U.S. has embassies in all Asian countries it recognizes apart from

Bhutan Bhutan, officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked country in South Asia, in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and northwest and India to the south and southeast. With a population of over 727,145 and a territory of , ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, and

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

. It has '

interests section A protecting power is a country that represents another sovereign state—the protected power—in a third country where the protected power lacks its own formal diplomatic representation (e.g., lacks an embassy or consulate). It is common fo ...

s' in other nations' embassies in Afghanistan, Iran, North Korea, and Syria. It also has a ''de facto'' embassy in Taiwan. File:Us-embassy.close.jpg, Embassy in Abu Dhabi File:American Embassy in Amman.jpg, Embassy in Amman File:Türkiye'deki ABD Büyükelçiliği.jpg, Embassy in Ankara File:American Embassy in Istanbul.jpg, Consulate-General in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

File:U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq.png, Embassy in Baghdad File:U.S. Embassy in Bangkok.png, Embassy in Bangkok File:Wider Photograph of Chancery Office Building Showing Glass Curtain Wall large.jpg, Embassy in Beijing File:New US embassy complex in Beirut, under construction 2023.jpg, New Embassy in Beirut under construction File:USCG-Chengdu.jpg, former Consulate-General in

Chengdu Chengdu; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ; Chinese postal romanization, previously Romanization of Chinese, romanized as Chengtu. is the capital city of the Chinese province of Sichuan. With a ...

(1985-2020) File:HK US Consulate General.jpg, Consulate-General in Hong Kong File:US embassy dhaka.jpg, Embassy in Dhaka File:American Embassy in Hanoi.JPG, Embassy in Hanoi File:Bangunan Warisan di Kedutaan Besar AS Jakarta (49421948778).jpg, Embassy in Jakarta File:United States Dedicates New Consulate General Compound in Surabaya, Indonesia.jpg, Consulate General in Surabaya File:Relocation of US Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem DSC0557 (28239099728).jpg, Embassy in Jerusalem File:US embassy Tel Aviv 6924.JPG, Embassy Branch Office in

Tel Aviv Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...

File:American Embassy Kuala Lumpur Dec. 2006 002.jpg, Embassy in Kuala Lumpur File:USManilaChancery.jpg, Embassy in Manila File:US Embassy New Delhi.jpg, Embassy in New Delhi File:Посольство США в Астане.jpg, Embassy in Astana File:US Embassy Phnom Penh.jpg, Embassy in Phnom Penh File:USA Embassy Building in Seoul.jpg, Embassy in Seoul File:AIT NOC dedication ceremony - Flickr id 29162044008.jpg, American Institute in Taiwan - Main Office in

Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...

File:US Embassy Tbilisi.jpg, Embassy in Tbilisi File:Embassy of the US in Japan.jpg, Embassy in Tokyo File:US Embassy in Mongolia.jpg, Embassy in Ulaanbaatar File:US Embassy, Yerevan.jpg, Embassy in Yerevan

Europe

The U.S. has embassies in (or, in the case of

Vatican City Vatican City, officially the Vatican City State (; ), is a Landlocked country, landlocked sovereign state and city-state; it is enclaved within Rome, the capital city of Italy and Bishop of Rome, seat of the Catholic Church. It became inde ...

, near) all European countries it recognizes apart from

Andorra Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra, is a Sovereignty, sovereign landlocked country on the Iberian Peninsula, in the eastern Pyrenees in Southwestern Europe, Andorra–France border, bordered by France to the north and Spain to A ...

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (, ; ; ), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein ( ), is a Landlocked country#Doubly landlocked, doubly landlocked Swiss Standard German, German-speaking microstate in the Central European Alps, between Austria in the east ...

Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...

, and

San Marino San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...

. File:American embassy at vasilissis sophias in athens.JPG, Embassy in Athens File:Демократски саобраћајни знаци.jpg, Former embassy building in Belgrade File:Berlin, Mitte, Ebertstrasse, US-Botschaft.jpg, Embassy in Berlin File:911 Memorial at U.S. Consulate General Frankfurt, Presenting colors.jpg, Consulate-General in Frankfurt File:Consulate General USA Hamburg 2.jpg, Consulate-General in Hamburg File:München Amerikanisches Generalkonsulat.jpg, Consulate-General in Munich File:3 US Embassy in Berne, Switzerland, December 4th, 2018.jpg, Embassy in Bern File:US embassy in Bratislava.jpg, Embassy in Bratislava File:American embassy buildings, Brussels.jpg, Embassy in Brussels File:Budapest U.S. embassy.JPG, Embassy in Budapest File:American Embassy, Chişinău.jpg, Embassy in Chişinău File:U.S. Embassy Chancery Building in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.jpg, Embassy in Dublin File:Embassy of the United States The Hague.jpg, Embassy in The Hague File:US Consulate General Amsterdam Museumplein Dec 2013.JPG, Consulate-General in Amsterdam File:Yhdysvaltain Helsingin-suurlähetystö.jpg, Embassy in Helsinki File:Embassy of USA in Kyiv.jpg, Embassy in Kyiv File:Veleposlanistvo ZDA v Ljubljani Embassy of USA in Ljubljana Slovenia.jpg, Embassy in Ljubljana File:United States Embassy, London (cropped).png, Embassy in London File:Madrid - Embajada de Estados Unidos.jpg, Embassy in Madrid File:210 Torre Godó Eguia, consolat dels EUA, pg. Reina Elisenda de Montcada 23 (Barcelona).jpg, Consulate-General in Barcelona File:US embassy new building in Moscow.jpg, Embassy in Moscow File:US Embassy in Oslo, Morgedalsveien.jpg, Embassy in Oslo File:US embassy Paris 6375.JPG, Embassy in Paris File:Schönbornský palác v Praze 01.JPG, Embassy in Prague File:Roma ambaixada EUA.jpg, Embassy in Rome File:Palazzo calcagnini dal lungarno.JPG, Consulate-General in Florence File:US Embassy in Skopje.jpg, Embassy in Skopje File:Amerikanska Ambassaden, Stockholm, Sweden..jpg, Embassy in Stockholm File:US Embassy, Tirana.jpg, Embassy in Tirana File:American Embassy in Vienna.jpg, Embassy in Vienna File:Ambasada Stanów Zjednoczonych w Warszawie 2022.jpg, Embassy in Warsaw File:Tenement-Consulate General of the United States, 9 Stolarska street, Old Town, Krakow, Poland.jpg, Consulate-General in Krakow File:US embassy Zagreb Croatia.jpg, Embassy in Zagreb

Oceania

The U.S. has embassies in all countries in Oceania it recognizes apart from the

Cook Islands The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately . The Cook Islands' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers of ocean. Avarua is its ...

Kiribati Kiribati, officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island country in the Micronesia subregion of Oceania in the central Pacific Ocean. Its permanent population is over 119,000 as of the 2020 census, and more than half live on Tarawa. The st ...

Nauru Nauru, officially the Republic of Nauru, formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies within the Micronesia subregion of Oceania, with its nearest neighbour being Banaba (part of ...

Niue Niue is a self-governing island country in free association with New Zealand. It is situated in the South Pacific Ocean and is part of Polynesia, and predominantly inhabited by Polynesians. One of the world's largest coral islands, Niue is c ...

, and

Tuvalu Tuvalu ( ) is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands (which belong to the Solomon Islands), northeast of Van ...

. File:Embassy of the United States.jpg, Embassy in Canberra File:American Embassy in Kolonia.jpg, Embassy in Kolonia File:WellingtonEmbassy-USA.jpg, Embassy in Wellington

International organizations

File:12 avenue Raphaël, Paris 16e 2.jpg, Permanent Mission to the OECD in

File:U.S. Mission to the United Nations in Geneva.jpg, Permanent Mission to the United Nations in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

File:US Mission to the UN (51923305394).jpg, Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York City

Closed missions

Africa

Americas

Asia

Europe

Missions to open

Notes

References

External links

State Department

Details of diplomatic missions of the United States
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Diplomatic Missions Of The United States

Diplomatic missions of the United States The United States has the second largest number of active diplomatic posts of any country in the world List of diplomatic missions of China, after the People's Republic of China, including 272 bilateral posts (embassies and consulates) in 174 co ...

History

Current missions

Africa

America

Asia

Europe

Oceania

International organizations

Closed missions

Africa

Americas

Asia

Europe

Missions to open

See also

Notes

References

External links