@coldjoint,
Exactly why are you equating her 23 years of service PRIOR to Obama as "corrupt"? Or even AFTER?
Yovanovitch joined the U.S. Foreign Service in 1986. Her first foreign assignment, in Ottawa, was followed by overseas assignments including Moscow, London, and Mogadishu. From May 1998 to May 2000 she served as the Deputy Director of the Russian Desk in the U.S. Department of State.[13]
From August 2001 to June 2004, as a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, she was the Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Kiev, Ukraine.[14] From August 2004 to May 2005 she was the senior advisor to the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs.[15] Yovanovitch also served as International Advisor and Deputy Commandant at the National Defense University's Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy and as dean of the School of Language Studies within the U.S. Department of State's Foreign Service Institute.[15]
U.S. Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan and Armenia and subsequent service
Yovanovitch is "well known in diplomatic circles for her measured demeanor and diligence in representing both Republican and Democratic administrations."[16] Yovanovitch was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan on November 20, 2004; she presented her credentials on February 4, 2005, and remained in this post until February 4, 2008.[1][17] Her nomination as ambassador to Kyrgyzstan was confirmed by the Senate on a voice vote.[18]
Yovanovitch was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Armenia on August 4, 2008; she presented her credentials on September 22, 2008, and remained in this post until June 9, 2011.[17] Her nomination as ambassador to Armenia was again confirmed by the Senate on a voice vote.[19] During confirmation hearings, Yovanovitch acknowledged that Turks had committed mass killings, rapes, and expulsions of Armenians between 1915 and 1923, calling this "one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century," but, in line with U.S. policy, declined to use the phrase Armenian Genocide, saying that the use of this politically sensitive phrase was a policy decision that could be made only by the highest-ranking U.S. officials, namely President George W. Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.[20]
While in Armenia, Yovanovitch oversaw a staff of almost 400 Americans and Armenians in one of the largest embassy compounds in the world.[21] She pushed Armenian authorities to give fair treatment to Armenians arrested in post-election protests in 2008.[16] Yovanovitch received the Secretary's Diplomacy in Human Rights Award,[15] a department award honoring ambassadors who demonstrate "extraordinary commitment to defending human rights."[16] She was also known for her work supporting democratic development and the advancement of women.[22]
After returning to Washington in 2012 and 2013, Yovanovitch served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs.[4] In that position, Yovanovitch was a key State Department headquarters contact for U.S. diplomats in Europe, working with, among others, U.S. Ambassador to Poland Lee Feinstein, regarding issues such as U.S. missile defense in Poland.[16] Yovanovitch received the department's Senior Foreign Service Performance Award six times and the Superior Honor Award five times.[15] She was promoted to the rank of Career Minister in 2016.[23]
U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine
Yovanovitch was announced as the nominee for U.S. ambassador to Ukraine on May 18, 2016, to replace Geoff Pyatt;[24] the nomination was sent to the Senate the next day, and confirmed by voice vote of the Senate on July 14, 2016.[25] Having been sworn in on August 12, Yovanovitch arrived in Ukraine on August 22[26] and presented her credentials on August 29, 2016.[1]
Anti-corruption work and other activities
Yovanovitch was respected within the national security community for her efforts to encourage Ukraine to tackle corruption,[27] and during her tenure had sought to strengthen the Ukrainian National Anti-Corruption Bureau, which had been created to bolster efforts to fight corruption in Ukraine; these efforts earned Yovanovitch some enemies within the country.[28] In a March 2019 speech to the Ukraine Crisis Media Center, Yovanovitch said that the Ukrainian government was not making sufficient progress to combat corruption, saying: "It is increasingly clear that Ukraine's once-in-a-generation opportunity for change has not yet resulted in the anti-corruption or rule of law reforms that Ukrainians expect or deserve."[29]
