U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday nominated Michele Sison to be ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Republic of Maldives.

Ambassador Michele J. Sison, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Minister-Counselor, is currently the Assistant Chief of Mission for Law Enforcement and Rule of Law Assistance in Baghdad, Iraq.  

From 2008 to 2010, she was Ambassador to the Republic of Lebanon.  She was Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates from 2004 to 2008 and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of South Asian Affairs from 2002 to 2004.  

Ambassador Sison’s prior assignments include:  Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan; Consul General in Chennai, India; Consul General in Douala, Cameroon; and Director of Career Development and Assignments in the Department of State’s Bureau of Human Resources.

Additional overseas assignments include roles at the U.S. Embassies in Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Togo, and Haiti.  Ambassador Sison received a B.A. from Wellesley College.

“Our nation will be greatly served by the talent and expertise these individuals bring to their new roles,” Obama said, according to a White House statement.

“I am grateful they have agreed to serve in this Administration, and I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.”