Senate confirms U.S. ambassador for Haiti
WASHINGTON
The Senate confirmed Dennis Hankins as U.S. ambassador to Haiti in a bipartisan vote on Thursday, resolving a years-long vacancy as the Caribbean nation faces a political and security crisis not seen in decades.
The last ambassador in the role, Michele Sison, left in October 2021 after serving for three years. Since then, chargé d’affaires Eric Stromayer has been overseeing U.S. policy in the country.
The White House said it was “urgent” that Hankins take office at a crucial time for Haiti. Gangs have overrun police stations and prisons in the capital, threatening to topple the country’s fragile government.
“This is a critical time to make sure that we have an ambassador in place,” National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby told reporters on Thursday, noting that violence in the capital of Portau-Prince had increased in recent days. “We certainly urgently need him in place.”
Hankins’ experience will be a critical asset as the United States pushes for the deployment of a multinational security mission to Haiti, to be led by Kenya.
Most of his diplomatic career has focused on Africa. He has also served as deputy director for peacekeeping in Washington.
Fluent in French, along with Portuguese and Indonesian, he was nominated by President Joe Biden nearly a year ago in May. The career diplomat has nearly four decades of experience in some of the world’s toughest postings, including Sudan and Congo. He has also served as ambassador in Mali and Guinea.
Hankins’ experience in Haiti is limited to a stint early in his career as the nonimmigrant visa chief and the refugee coordinator in the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince.