REPORT FOR THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS
UNITED STATES SENATE
SUBJECT: Ambassadorial Nomination: Certificate of Demonstrated Competence — Foreign Service Act, Section 304(a)(4)
POST: United Arab Emirates
CANDIDATE: Martina Anna Tkadlec Strong
Martina Anna Tkadlec Strong is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Minister-Counselor. She currently serves as Chargé d’Affaires, a.i., of the U.S. Mission to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Previously she was the Deputy Chief of Mission and also Chargé d’Affaires, a.i., at the U.S. Embassy in Sofia, Bulgaria, and before that, the Minister Counselor for Political and Political-Military Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq. Ms. Strong also served as Counselor for Political-Economic Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Poland, and as Political Advisor to 34th ID and 1 ID, Multinational Division – South, Basrah, Iraq. Her demonstrated success in leadership positions, coupled with her substantive experience in the region and with security and political-military issues, makes her a well-qualified candidate to serve as Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates.
Among her other assignments, Ms. Strong was the Deputy Counselor for Political-Economic Affairs at the U.S. Embassies in Prague, the Czech Republic, and in Bridgetown, Barbados. Earlier she served as Director for the G-8 on the National Security Council, Washington, D.C. She also held positions as the Desk Officer for the Czech Republic in the State Department, as Special Assistant to the Ambassador at the U.S. Embassy Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and at the U.S. Embassies in Paris, France, and Warsaw, Poland. Prior to joining the State Department, she was an Analyst for the International Trade Administration, Department of Commerce, Washington, D.C.
Ms. Strong earned her B.A. degree from Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas, and her M.A. degree from the University of California, Berkeley.
She is the recipient of multiple State Department awards, including the Sinclaire Language Award, as well as Meritorious and Superior Civilian Service Awards from the U.S. Army. She speaks Arabic, Czech, and Polish.