List of ambassadors of the United States to Finland

This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to Finland.

Ambassador of the United States to Finland
Seal of the United States Department of State
Flag of a United States ambassador
Incumbent Christopher Krafft chargé d'affaires a.i. since September 20, 2024
Nominator	The president of the United States
Appointer	The president with Senate advice and consent
Inaugural holder	Alexander R. Magruder as Chargé d'Affaires
Formation	March 19, 1920; 105 years ago (1920-03-19)
Website	fi.usembassy.gov

Until 1917 Finland had been a subject of Russia as the Grand Duchy of Finland. As a result of the Bolshevist October Revolution in Russia, Finland declared its independence on December 6, 1917. On December 22 (January 4, 1918 N. S.), the highest Soviet executive body approved a decree recognizing Finland's independence.

The United States recognized Finland as an independent state on May 7, 1919.^[1][2] A U.S. legation was established in Helsinki and the first envoy, Alexander R. Magruder, presented his credentials as Chargé d'Affaires to the government of Finland on March 19, 1920. United States–Finland relations have been continuous since that time except for a brief period in 1944–45 when the U.S. severed relations during World War II.

The U.S. Embassy in Finland is located in Helsinki in the Kaivopuisto neighborhood.

Ambassadors

Ambassador John D. Hickerson with president Juho Kusti Paasikivi (left) and foreign minister Johannes Virolainen (right) in 1955

Tyler Thompson arrives in Finland in August 1964

Douglas Hickey, United States Ambassador to Finland visits Prime Minister of Finland Petteri Orpo in 2023

Embassy of the United States in Kaivopuisto, Helsinki in 2017

Image	Name	Title	Appointed	Presented credentials	Terminated mission	Notes
	Alexander R. Magruder – Career FSO	Chargé d'Affaires	March 19, 1920[3]		February 17, 1922
	Charles L. Kagey – Political appointee	Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary	October 8, 1921	February 17, 1922	March 24, 1925
	Alfred J. Pearson[4] – Political appointee		June 23, 1925	September 5, 1925	April 30, 1930
	Edward E. Brodie – Political appointee		January 31, 1930	May 16, 1930	September 21, 1933
	Edward Albright[5] – Political appointee		July 21, 1933	October 5, 1933	April 12, 1937
	H. F. Arthur Schoenfeld – Career FSO		April 22, 1937	July 2, 1937	December 17, 1942
The United States severed diplomatic relations with Finland on June 30, 1944, as result of Finland’s war against the Soviet Union. At that time the Soviet Union was an ally of the United States. Edmund A. Gullion was serving as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim when the relations were severed. The United States reestablished diplomatic relations with Finland after World War II. The legation in Helsinki was reestablished September 1, 1945, with Benjamin M. Hulley as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim.
	Maxwell M. Hamilton – Career FSO	Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary	September 25, 1945	March 26, 1946	August 25, 1947
	Avra M. Warren – Career FSO		December 18, 1947	February 10, 1948	February 18, 1950
	John M. Cabot – Career FSO		February 2, 1950	February 27, 1950	September 20, 1952
	Jack K. McFall[6] – Career FSO		September 10, 1952	November 15, 1952	September 19, 1955	The legation in Helsinki was raised to embassy status on September 10, 1954. Concurrently the post of Minister became that of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.
	John D. Hickerson[7] – Career FSO	Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary	October 4, 1955	November 23, 1955	November 3, 1959
	Edson O. Sessions[8] – Political appointee		October 20, 1959	November 28, 1959	November 20, 1960
	Bernard Gufler – Career FSO		February 24, 1961	April 14, 1961	April 18, 1963
	Carl T. Rowan – Political appointee		March 9, 1963	May 21, 1963	February 8, 1964
	Tyler Thompson – Career FSO		July 31, 1964	August 25, 1964	June 14, 1969
	Val Peterson – Political appointee		May 1, 1969	July 14, 1969	March 23, 1973
	V. John Krehbiel – Political appointee		March 27, 1973	June 1, 1973	February 24, 1975
	Mark Evans Austad – Political appointee		February 20, 1975	March 20, 1975	April 14, 1977
	Rozanne L. Ridgway – Career FSO		May 26, 1977	August 5, 1977	February 20, 1980
	James E. Goodby – Career FSO		March 18, 1980	April 11, 1980	August 18, 1981
	Keith Foote Nyborg – Political appointee		July 30, 1981	September 18, 1981	February 17, 1986
	Rockwell A. Schnabel – Political appointee		December 17, 1985	February 28, 1986	February 24, 1989
	John Giffen Weinmann – Political appointee		October 10, 1989	November 10, 1989	August 29, 1991
	John Hubert Kelly – Career FSO		December 2, 1991	December 20, 1991	July 5, 1994
	Derek Shearer – Political appointee		May 29, 1994	July 1, 1994	October 31, 1997
	Eric S. Edelman – Career FSO		June 29, 1998	August 27, 1998	January 29, 2001
	Bonnie McElveen-Hunter – Political appointee		November 5, 2001	December 5, 2001	December 15, 2003
	Earle I. Mack – Political appointee		May 25, 2004	June 10, 2004	October 20, 2005
	Marilyn Ware – Political appointee		February 7, 2006	March 9, 2006	March 28, 2008
	Barbara Barrett – Political appointee		April 20, 2008	May 23, 2008	January 16, 2009
	Michael Butler[9]	Chargé d'Affaires	January 16, 2009	N/A	August 12, 2009
	Bruce J. Oreck – Political appointee[10]	Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary	August 12, 2009	September 10, 2009	July 25, 2015
	Charles C. Adams Jr. – Political appointee		June 24, 2015	August 4, 2015	January 20, 2017
	Robert Pence – Political appointee		March 22, 2018	May 24, 2018	January 14, 2021
	Ian Campbell	Chargé d'Affaires	January 14, 2021	N/A	May 11, 2022
	Doug Hickey – Political appointee	Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary	March 24, 2022	May 11, 2022	September 20, 2024
	Christopher Krafft	Chargé d'Affaires	September 20, 2024	N/A	Incumbent