Kate Marie Byrnes (born 1971) is an American diplomat, who served as the United States ambassador to North Macedonia between July 2019 and September 2022. She is a career diplomat who has received many awards for her service.

Education

Byrnes has a bachelor of science in international relations (foreign service) from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

, and a master's degree in policy management, also from Georgetown.

Career

Diplomatic service

During her time in the diplomatic service, she served in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, and

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. She also served as the deputy chief of mission of the

United States Mission to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe The United States Mission to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe represents the United States government in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Currently, Michael R. Carpenter represents the Unit ...

, where she expressed dismay at

Russian aggression against Ukraine Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

. After that, she became deputy chief of mission in Greece from 2017 to 2019. From 2007 through 2010, she was a public affairs advisor to the United States Mission to the

North Atlantic Treaty Organization The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

. She has previously represented U.S. interests in Bolivia, Hungary, Spain, and Turkey.

Ambassador to North Macedonia

She was originally nominated to

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...

in 2018, and re-nominated in 2019, both before and after the nation changed its name. Byrnes was appointed to replace Ambassador Jess Baily. A career diplomat, she had served as the deputy ambassador in Athens, and was the designated representative of the U.S. mission to the

Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, prom ...

in Vienna. Addressing the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

during her confirmation hearings, she averred her continuing commitment "to strengthen cooperation with (North) Macedonia as a strategic partner." She highlighted that the Prespes agreement surmounted an historic hurdle, so its implementation is regionally important. Upon her appointment, acting

Assistant Secretary of State Assistant Secretary of State (A/S) is a title used for many executive positions in the United States Department of State, ranking below the Under Secretary of State, under secretaries. A set of six assistant secretaries reporting to the Under Secret ...

Philip Reeker Philip Thomas Reeker (born January 19, 1965) is an American diplomat and career foreign service officer with the United States Department of State, Department of State who currently serves as the senior advisor for Caucasus negotiations. He was p ...

saw her appointment as a harbinger of "a new era of bilateral cooperation, as friends and allies of the Republic of Macedonia." She brought twenty-four years experience as a diplomat before being appointed to the post. Fulfilling its responsibility under the

Foreign Service Act The Rogers Act of 1924, often referred to as the Foreign Service Act of 1924, is the legislation that merged the United States diplomatic and consular services into the United States Foreign Service. It defined a personnel system under which the U ...

, Section 304(a)(4), 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 overseeing and funding foreign aid pro ...

noted that she has a well-documented path of competency in extremely demanding positions.

Personal

Byrnes is married to Larry Scott Gage, a retired naval officer. She speaks

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

, Hungarian and

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

Awards

* Eight

Superior Honor Award The Superior Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State. Similar versions of the same award exist for the former U.S. Information Agency, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and USAID. It is presented to groups or individ ...

and

Meritorious Honor Award The Meritorious Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State. Similar versions of the same award exist for the former U.S. Information Agency, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and USAID. It is presented to groups or indiv ...

s *

Expeditionary Service Award The Expeditionary Service Award is an award of the United States Department of State. It is presented to employees in the Department who serve in designated field locations. Currently, the following locations have been designated expeditionary b ...

from the U.S. Department of State * Two

Meritorious Civilian Service Award The Meritorious Civilian Service Award is commonly the highest award granted by U.S. Army Commanders (Major General and above, or civilian equivalent). The Award and Medal is provided to civilian employees within agencies of the federal governmen ...

s from the

U.S. Department of the Army The United States Department of the Army (DA) is one of the three military departments within the Department of Defense of the U.S. The Department of the Army is the federal government agency within which the United States Army (U.S.) is o ...

References

Notes

Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Byrnes, Kate Marie Ambassadors of the United States to North Macedonia Walsh School of Foreign Service alumni 1971 births Living people United States Foreign Service personnel 21st-century American diplomats American women ambassadors 21st-century American women American women diplomats