The US Senate approved on Wednesday the appointment of Michael Alan Ratney to serve as the US Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. US President Joe Biden had announced Ratney’s candidacy for the post back in April, 2022. The US embassy in Riyadh welcomed the appointment. “The US Senate approved the appointment of US ambassador Michael Ratney as the new ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” the US embassy said in a tweet. “We look forward to welcoming him in Riyadh,” it added. Ratney, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank of Minister-Counselor, most recently served as Acting Deputy Director at the Department of State’s Foreign Service Institute. Previously, he served as Chargé d’Affaires a.i. in the US Embassy in Jerusalem and was the Dean of the School of Language Studies at the Foreign Service Institute. Prior to that, Ratney was on the faculty of the National Defense University. He served as the State Department’s acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Levant and Israel and Palestinian Affairs and was the US Special Envoy for Syria. Earlier, Ratney was the US Consul General in Jerusalem. He was Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Media in the State Department’s Bureau of Public Affairs. Prior to that, he served as Spokesman for the State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. Other assignments include Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Doha, Qatar, as well as tours in Mexico City, Baghdad, Beirut, Casablanca, Bridgetown, and Washington, DC. Ratney’s deep and substantive background in Near Eastern affairs, proficiency in Arabic, demonstrated ability to lead large interagency teams, and extensive expertise in press and public diplomacy, all make him a well-qualified candidate for Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Ratney earned a BS from Boston University, and an MA from the George Washington University. He is the recipient of multiple State Department performance awards, including six Senior Foreign Service Performance awards and a Presidential Meritorious Service award, and speaks Arabic and French.