Outspoken U.S. Ambassador Michael McFaul to leave Russia after only two years
Source: Rawstory/ AFP
Michael McFaul, the outspoken US ambassador to Russia who has frequently clashed with authorities in Moscow, said Tuesday he would leave the country after just two years.
An embassy spokeswoman confirmed the diplomat was leaving Russia "early" but declined to comment further.
"Soon after the Olympics, I plan to rejoin my family in California," McFaul wrote on his blog.
"After more than five years of working in President Obama's administration the time has come to return home."
Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/02/04/outspoken-u-s-ambassador-michael-mcfaul-to-leave-russia-after-only-two-years/
pampango
(24,692 posts)Whats a U.S. ambassador to do when he wants to get his message out in a country that enjoys making America look bad, has little patience for Western values and tightly controls the media? Call him @McFaul, the tweeting ambassador.
For Ambassador Michael McFaul, the unfiltered communication offered by social media means he can tweet U.S. policy, blog it and post it on Facebook, an alternative to the mostly hostile traditional media here. While Russian Internet use is widespread, the majority of people still get their news from television, so McFaul is unlikely to win the nations hearts and minds tweet by tweet. But his use of social media gets him buzz and a direct line to a new audience.
McFaul tweets, he said in an interview, because Hillary Rodham Clinton, the former U.S. secretary of state who sent him to Moscow two years ago, told him to.
McFaul, who is 50 and a proud native of Montana, was not a career diplomat. He was a Stanford University political science professor and Russia expert who wrote extensively about democracy-building efforts in the region. He was a member of the National Security Council, serving as President Obamas Russia adviser, before becoming ambassador.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/moscow-ambassador-tweets-us-policy/2014/01/11/ac1fefea-7568-11e3-8b3f-b1666705ca3b_story.html
It will be interesting to read a fuller account of his departure. I would imagine that being a 'democracy-builder' and seeking a 'direct line to a new audience' can't have gone over too well with Vlad.