The new US Ambassador Kenneth Merten arrived in Bulgaria

"Today (April 6), the new US Ambassador to Bulgaria, Kenneth Merten, confirmed by the Senate, arrived in Bulgaria and met with the Embassy staff.

"We are delighted to introduce him to our friends and allies in wonderful Bulgaria!", the Embassy wrote.

Kenneth Merten holds the rank of Career Secretary in the United States Department of State.

Prior to his nomination as Ambassador to Bulgaria in June 2022, Mr. Merten led the U.S. Embassy in Haiti as the Charge d'Affaires for six months. From January 2019 to January 2021, Kenneth Merten served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Office of the Director General's Global Talent Management Office.

From January to October 2021, he served as Director General of the Foreign Diplomatic Service.

Prior to joining the Office of Global Talent Management, Kenneth Merten served in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs from August 2015 to January 2019, and from January to November 2017, he concurrently served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary responsible for Haiti, Canada, the Caribbean, and the Office of Policy, Planning and Coordination in the same Bureau.

He had two appointments as United States Ambassador - to the Republic of Croatia from 2012 to August 2015 and previously as United States Ambassador to Haiti from 2009 to July 2012.

He also served as a Deputy Executive Secretary to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and earlier to US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

In 2011, he received the Ryan C. Crocker Award for Outstanding Leadership in "Expeditionary Diplomacy" [emergency diplomacy to stabilize in areas of instability or conflict] for his remarkable contributions following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.

While Ambassador to Haiti, Mr. Merten oversaw the immediate relief activities provided by the United States government on the ground following the earthquake through the presence of 8,000 U.S. military personnel, as well as hundreds of other professionals drawn from multiple U.S. government agencies, including the Agency for International Development.

In the days following the earthquake, he also led the largest evacuation of American citizens since World War II.

During his overseas assignments, Mr. Merten also served at the U.S. Embassy in Paris, the U.S. Diplomatic Mission to the European Union in Brussels, and the U.S. Embassy in Bonn during German reunification and the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti (three terms).

Mr. Merten's professional experience in Washington includes two assignments in the State Department's Operations Center, which is responsible for responding to emerging international emergencies, providing State Department leadership with updates on major events, and supporting the Secretary of State's daily work and travel.

Kenneth Merten also worked in the Bureau of Economic and Trade Affairs, Cuba Division, and for the Special Advisors on Haiti in 1993-1994.

Kenneth Merten holds a B.A. from Miami University of Ohio and a Master of Public Administration from American University in Washington, DC. He also studied at the University of Aix-Marseille in France and at Karl Franzens University in Austria.

In May 2010, he opened the academic year at the University of Miami with a speech to more than 10,000 attendees and received an honorary doctorate from the university.

In July 2012, the President of Haiti awarded Ambassador Merten the Grand Cross of Honour and Merit, making him the fourth foreign diplomat to receive this honour since Haiti's independence more than 200 years ago. For his work in Haiti, Kenneth Merten received the Shandling Humanitarian Award in January 2018, presented by Sean Penn and his humanitarian aid organization, Community Organized Relief Effort). In 2018, Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, named Mr. Merten as its first honorary graduate.

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