US Ambassador to Thailand Kristie Kenney announces leaving Thailand

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American Ambassador announces leaving Thailand
By Coconuts Bangkok



BANGKOK: -- After four years, US Ambassador to Thailand Kristie Kenney has announced that she will be leaving her post and returning to Washington to work at the US State Department.

Ambassador Kenney made the announcement speaking Thai in a Youtube video in which she thanked Thailand for its hospitality and professed her love for Thai food and people.

After four years, US Ambassador to Thailand Kristie Kenney has announced that she will be leaving her post and returning to Washington to work at the US State Department.

Ambassador Kenney made the announcement speaking Thai in a Youtube video in which she thanked Thailand for its hospitality and professed her love for Thai food and people.

Full story: http://bangkok.coconuts.co//2014/10/08/american-ambassador-announces-leaving-thailand


-- Coconuts Bangkok 2014-10-08

[Pib]

Probably one of the few Ambassadors of any nation who could also speak Thai. Best of luck in your next job.

[bob4you]

Don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out! Good riddance!

Spoken like a true a-hole.

[JOC]

We thank you three times!!

[boomerangutang]

She was perfect for the job from the Thai perspective. Attractive, amicable, lively, never taking a counter position to what Thai officials wanted. However, there were times when I wish she could have shown some grit. For example, Thaksin getting a visa to visit the US, even though he's a fugitive from the law. Granted, that's primarily a US Imm. Dept. issue, but she, in her position could have been influential in that decision if she chose to speak up. As for the Yingluck puppet administration dropping the ball on allowing NASA to set up a research station in Thailand ....well again, perhaps that was too far removed from Madame Ambassador's influence. Would have been a big plus for Thailand though, to have some real scientists doing real science in their country, with Thai assistants, of course. Thailand needs all the help it can get to appreciate real science, and ease away from their ingrained hocus pocus beliefs.

[Jingthing]

I thought she was pretty good.

Do you think she read Thaivisa?

[ExPratt]

That's a real shame , she seemed like such a kind, generous , self sacrificing , honorable lady

I shall miss her

[mrtoad]

I thought she was pretty good.

Do you think she read Thaivisa?

Michael Yon will be very upset

[Pib]

Never heard of her, seems to have been another doormat, these people are all too often little more than grovellers.

Gosh, you must not read the Bangkok Post or Nation much...also seen several times a year on Thai TV news reports. If it had anything to do with the U.S.-Thailand relations she was part of the story.

[chainarong]

Well done Ambassador, good luck in your new surroundings .

Edited October 8, 2014 by chainarong

[Living in a cartoon]

No loss. Then again, not an important posting anyway.

[Dogmatix]

Didn't come across any Americans in the business community who had a good word for her.

[JohnThailandJohn]

She will be missed by Thailand

[bubblegum]

Good bye,bye !

[fish fingers]

Did she help that US guy out in Samui, the one that was battered by the two chinese students? Would be interested to know.

[Nayet]

Did she help that US guy out in Samui, the one that was battered by the two chinese students? Would be interested to know.

You mean the Australian guy?

[ExPratt]

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She doesn't need to be butting heads with a Thai General/PM that took power by overthrowing a democratically elected PM.

What a subversive thing to say , you'll be gathering in groups of over 5 next. The NCPO's crusade for Thai style Democracy will fail if such statements are allowed to stand

[LNKDES1]

I better update my CV

[Jingthing]

Just another piece of bureaucratic deadwood gobbling the money of hard working taxpayers.

Yeah, who needs an ambassador to Thailand?

Who needs a U.S. embassy in Thailand?

Let's outsource it all to a Delaware corporation, like many U.S. prisons.

That's the ticket!

[Jingthing]

I thought those were wax museum figures.

[BuddyPinkham]

Well, as an American, I am not sorry to see her leave. I am sure there are many things that go on behind the scenes that we do not see or hear about, BUT....... from what I have gathered, she is more of a socialite than an embassador. Her photo ops, are what we see in the newspapers and on TV. Nothing substantial has ever been reported about her. Maybe she is being moved, because she is ineffective, to a highly paid desk job in DC where there is more opportunities for social endeavors.

Kristie Kenney began her duties as the United States Ambassador to the Royal Kingdom of Thailand on January 8, 2011. A career senior Foreign Service officer, she served as the first female United States Ambassador to the Philippines from 2006-2010. She began her diplomatic career in 1981 and her overseas assignments have included serving as the U.S. Ambassador to Ecuador and in positions at U.S. Embassies in Jamaica, Switzerland, and Argentina. For the last twenty-eight years, she has been married to Bill Brownfield, who is currently the Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics, Law Enforcement and Crime. (http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/ambassador.html).

Looks to me she has been moved around a lot!

[TheCruncher]

Well, as an American, I am not sorry to see her leave. I am sure there are many things that go on behind the scenes that we do not see or hear about, BUT....... from what I have gathered, she is more of a socialite than an embassador. Her photo ops, are what we see in the newspapers and on TV. Nothing substantial has ever been reported about her. Maybe she is being moved, because she is ineffective, to a highly paid desk job in DC where there is more opportunities for social endeavors.

Kristie Kenney began her duties as the United States Ambassador to the Royal Kingdom of Thailand on January 8, 2011. A career senior Foreign Service officer, she served as the first female United States Ambassador to the Philippines from 2006-2010. She began her diplomatic career in 1981 and her overseas assignments have included serving as the U.S. Ambassador to Ecuador and in positions at U.S. Embassies in Jamaica, Switzerland, and Argentina. For the last twenty-eight years, she has been married to Bill Brownfield, who is currently the Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics, Law Enforcement and Crime. (http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/ambassador.html).

Looks to me she has been moved around a lot!

Weren't there rumors about a year ago that she was moved to Korea ?

[Johpa]

Kudos to her for learning Thai, an example to all the long term ex-pats who still can't bother to learn the local language.

[Jingthing]

Well, as an American, I am not sorry to see her leave. I am sure there are many things that go on behind the scenes that we do not see or hear about, BUT....... from what I have gathered, she is more of a socialite than an embassador. Her photo ops, are what we see in the newspapers and on TV. Nothing substantial has ever been reported about her. Maybe she is being moved, because she is ineffective, to a highly paid desk job in DC where there is more opportunities for social endeavors.

Kristie Kenney began her duties as the United States Ambassador to the Royal Kingdom of Thailand on January 8, 2011. A career senior Foreign Service officer, she served as the first female United States Ambassador to the Philippines from 2006-2010. She began her diplomatic career in 1981 and her overseas assignments have included serving as the U.S. Ambassador to Ecuador and in positions at U.S. Embassies in Jamaica, Switzerland, and Argentina. For the last twenty-eight years, she has been married to Bill Brownfield, who is currently the Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics, Law Enforcement and Crime. (http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/ambassador.html).

Looks to me she has been moved around a lot!

I think that is VERY NORMAL in such a career. Really.

As she loves Thai food, I'm sure she already knows there is excellent Thai food available in Washington, D.C., especially the Maryland suburbs where there is even a THAITOWN.

I get that she had the superficial smile, social media, fun PR events and songs thing going on but really I just assumed that was part of her schtick to increase her likability in THIS culture. No, personally, it doesn't work for me, but the job is mostly about being "diplomatic" to Thailand.

Obviously, she isn't going to ever be ambassador to RUSSIA. There that style might land a person in the loony bin.

BTW, I'm convinced that a good portion of the Americans who don't like her just don't like her because she's a woman in power and was appointed under Obama.

In any case any policies that she was communicating of course go back to Washington.

No, of course I'm not suggesting that Obama's overall foreign policy has been very successful, or specifically the so called Pivot to Asia.

It wasn't an easy historical time to be an ambassador to Thailand for any ambassador from any consequential country.

Edited October 8, 2014 by Jingthing

[rametindallas]

Don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out! Good riddance!

Out of curiosity, just what problem did you have with the ambassador? Worse than other ambassadors?

[falkan]

Kudos to her for learning Thai, an example to all the long term ex-pats who still can't bother to learn the local language.

c'mon son that was pretty basic thai

[Tokay]

Kudos to her for learning Thai, an example to all the long term ex-pats who still can't bother to learn the local language.

She should know Thai, at least on a basic level, she works for the US government and was posted in Thailand. It should be part of the job. I know many in the government who do go abroad do have to learn the local language, but I don't know if that applies to all positions and levels.

[noitom]

Her style of speaking and delivering Thai is very engaging. She certainly makes the listeners feel that she enjoyed being here. Did she do a similar video in English thanking her US expat constituency for giving her the opportunity to serve them and make their Thai experience more beneficial. Also did she include a video thanking the US taxpayers for their support in funding her efforts to help her enrich her Thai relationships and connections? Good luck to the ambassador.

[Johpa]

Kudos to her for learning Thai, an example to all the long term ex-pats who still can't bother to learn the local language.

c'mon son that was pretty basic thai

Are you kidding with me?!? Or have you been living an even more isolated existence from the mainstream ex-pat community that have I the past 30 years. And I really doubt that. The woman speaks Thai far better than the vast majority of ex-pats I have met. She uses complex sentences using the adverbs correctly. I don't equate her Thai with the simplified Thai of short sentences that are the mainstay of the minority portion of the ex-pat community that speaks at least some Thai, as opposed to the majority that speak no Thai.

Now if you want to criticize the US State Department in general, well I have been at the head of that line for decades. But I have seen many a US ambassador over the past 30 years and not many of them spoke much Thai. Whether she was a good ambassador I can't answer as I have had no contact with any US consular staff since the late 1980s. But to criticize my comment because you thought her Thai was too basic is as silly as you calling me, someone likely to be at least your age or maybe your father's age, "son".

[khunjamesjohnson]

Yes she did.

The US embassy celebrated the July 4 Independence Day Thursday night but without the presence of any Thai military leaders.

Edited October 8, 2014 by khunjamesjohnson