Eric George Nelson is the new US Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), which was confirmed on Thursday in the US Senate through the so-called ” voice voting. Nelson was nominated by US President Donald Trump in August last year. In this way, the procedure for setting up a new US ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina, which will replace Maureen Cormack in Sarajevo, is completed.
Eric George Nelson, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Minister-Counselor, is currently a Senior Advisor in the Office of the Secretary of State. As a Deputy Chief of Mission and Principal Officer, Mr. Nelson was known for building productive interagency and regional partnerships to advance shared security and prosperity. Throughout his career, he has built strong partnerships with host country officials, civil society, and the private sector in support of U.S. interests. His wide-ranging experience and exemplary leadership skills make him an excellent candidate for U.S. Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Previously, Mr. Nelson was Deputy Executive Secretary and Director of the Executive Office of the Executive Secretariat, Office of the Secretary of State (2015-2018), Director of the Office of eDiplomacy (2013-2015), Deputy Chief of Mission/Charge d’ Affaires a.i. at U.S. Embassy San Jose, Costa Rica (2010-2013), Management Officer at U.S. Embassy Islamabad, Pakistan (2009-2010), and Principal Officer at U.S. Consulate General Munich, Germany (2006-2009). He served as a Program Analyst and Special Assistant in the Bureau of Administration (2004-2006) and Management Officer at U.S. Consulate General Milan, Italy (2000-2004). He also served at the U.S. Embassy Mexico City, Mexico (1995-2000), the U.S. Consulate General Frankfurt, Germany (1992-1995) and the U.S. Embassy Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (1990-1991).
Mr. Nelson began his career in public service as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Liberia, West Africa. He earned a B.S.Ch.E. from Rice University and M.B.A. from the University of Texas, Austin. He was a fellow in MIT’s Seminar XXI in 2013-2014. He is the recipient of thirteen Department of State awards for management excellence, mentoring, innovation, and public diplomacy, the IDIZEM Dialog Prize for interreligious dialogue, and the FedScoop 50 Award for Federal Leadership in Technology. His languages are Spanish, German and Italian.
