# List of ambassadors of the United States to Sri Lanka and the Maldives

The position of United States Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives has existed since 1949. Sri Lanka–United States relations and Maldives–United States relations have been friendly throughout the history of Sri Lanka and the history of the Maldives. The diplomatic mission representing the United States in both countries is located in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Jefferson House is the ambassadorial residence of the ambassador in Colombo.

## United States Ambassadors to Ceylon

| # | Name | Start date | Finish date | |
| 1 | Felix Cole | August 3, 1949 | October 30, 1949 | Harry S. Truman |
| 2 | Joseph C. Satterthwaite | November 19, 1949 | July 25, 1953 | Harry S. Truman Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| 3 | Maxwell Henry Gluck | September 19, 1953 | September 27, 1956 | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| 4 | Philip K. Crowe | September 19, 1957 | October 2, 1958 | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| 5 | James Lampton Berry | November 22, 1958 | June 3, 1959 | Dwight D. Eisenhower |
| 6 | Bernard Gufler | August 24, 1959 | March 1, 1961 | Dwight D. Eisenhower John F. Kennedy |
| 7 | Frances E. Willis | May 11, 1961 | September 20, 1964 | John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Johnson |
| 8 | Cecil B. Lyon | October 30, 1964 | June 17, 1967 | Lyndon B. Johnson |
| 9 | Andrew V. Corry | May 24, 1967 | March 21, 1970 | Lyndon B. Johnson Richard Nixon |

## United States Ambassadors to Sri Lanka

| # | Name | Career track | Start date | Finish date | President(s) |
| 10 | Robert Strausz-Hupé | Political appointee | May 3, 1970 | December 12, 1971 | Richard Nixon |
| 11 | Christopher Van Hollen | Career FSO | October 27, 1972 | April 21, 1976 | Richard Nixon Gerald Ford |
| 12 | John H. Reed | Political appointee | July 2, 1976 | June 1, 1977 | Gerald Ford Jimmy Carter |
| 13 | William Howard Wriggins | Political appointee | August 18, 1977 | December 13, 1979 | Jimmy Carter |
| 14 | Donald R. Toussaint | Career FSO | January 21, 1980 | January 17, 1982 | Jimmy Carter Ronald Reagan |
| 15 | John H. Reed | Political appointee | February 8, 1982 | September 3, 1985 | Ronald Reagan |
| 16 | James W. Spain | Career FSO | November 21, 1985 | June 16, 1989 | Ronald Reagan George H. W. Bush |
| 17 | Marion V. Creekmore, Jr. | Career FSO | November 29, 1989 | August 27, 1992 | George H. W. Bush |
| 18 | Teresita Currie Schaffer | Career FSO | October 7, 1992 | August 15, 1995 | George H. W. Bush Bill Clinton |
| 19 | Peter Burleigh | Career FSO | January 19, 1996 | August 1, 1997 | Bill Clinton |
| 20 | Shaun E. Donnelly | | December 19, 1997 | August 16, 2000 | Bill Clinton |
| 21 | E. Ashley Wills | | November 13, 2000 | June 17, 2003 | Bill Clinton George W. Bush |
| 22 | Jeffrey Lunstead | | September 26, 2003 | September 9, 2006 | George W. Bush |
| 23 | Robert O. Blake, Jr. | Career FSO | September 9, 2006 | May 21, 2009 | George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| 24 | Patricia A. Butenis | Career FSO | September 17, 2009 | August 1, 2012 | Barack Obama |
| 25 | Michele J. Sison | Career FSO | September 14, 2012 | December 6, 2014 | Barack Obama |
| 26 | Atul Keshap | Career FSO | August 21, 2015 | July 15, 2018 | Barack Obama Donald Trump |
| 27 | Alaina B. Teplitz | Career FSO | November 1, 2018 | December 6, 2021 | Donald Trump Joe Biden |
| 28 | Julie J. Chung | Career FSO | February 25, 2022 | Incumbent | Joe Biden |