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Name: Butenis, Patricia
Current Position: Previous Ambassador
Patricia A. Butenis was appointed as the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives on May 27, 2009. She was sworn in on August 19, 2009. Previously, she served as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Baghdad from 2007 to 2009.
Butenis received her B.A. in anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.A. in International Relations from Columbia University. She joined the Foreign Service in 1980. She served as Vice Consul in Karachi, Pakistan from 1980-1982, Vice Consul/Political Officer in San Salvador, El Salvador from 1982-1985, and Consul in New Delhi, India from 1985-1988. From 1988 to 1990, she was an El Salvador Desk Officer and Consul (American Citizen Services Chief) in Bogotá, Colombia from 1990-1993. In 1993, she attended the National War College for a year. Following that, she served at the Visa Office, Field Liaison, in the Department of State from 1994-1997. She then served as Consul General in Warsaw, Poland from 1998-2001 and Consul General in Bogotá, Colombia from 2001-2004. From 2004-2006, she served as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Islamabad, and then from 2006-2007 she served as the Ambassador to Bangladesh.