The United States Embassy in Manila is set to welcome its new chief, United States Ambassador-designate to Manila MaryKay Loss Carlson.
US Embassy in Manila charge d’affaires Heather Variava on Wednesday, May 26, congratulated Carlson on Twitter, reposting photos of her swearing in ceremony.
“Mabuhay and congratulations from the @usembassyph team, Ambassador-designate Carlson! We look forward to your arrival and working together soon with our Filipino #FriendsPartnersAllies,” she said.
In her tweet, the ambassador-designate expressed excitement to work with the Philippines.
“Excited to be sworn in as the next U.S. ambassador to the Philippines,” she wrote.
Carlson has been a foreign service officer since 1985. She served as deputy chief of mission in Buenos Aires from September 2019 to January 2021.
She is to succeed Sung Kim, who served from November 2016 to October 2020.
Carlson became charge d’affaires and then became deputy chief of mission again in January 2022.
In her almost four decades in foreign service, she served in various capacities in India, China, Ukraine, Hong Kong, Mozambique, Kenya, and the Dominican Republic.
She also held the position of Principal Deputy Executive Secretary for the Secretary of State in Washington, DC.
Carlson, a mother of two, was a native of Little Rock, Arkansas. She received her BA in Spanish and International Studies from Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee.
She holds Masters Degrees from Georgetown University (International Relations) and the National War College (National Security Studies).