Ambassador Rudolf V. Perina is serving in the capacity of Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. at the United States Embassy in Bratislava. Previously, he served as the Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S Embassies in Prague (2013), Reykjavik (2010), Yerevan (2007) and Chisinau (2006) and as a senior State Department inspector (2008). From 2004 to 2006 he served as the Deputy Director of the State Department’s Policy Planning Staff. Previously, he was the U.S. Special Negotiator for Nagorno-Karabakh and Eurasian Conflicts (2001-2004) and Ambassador to the Republic of Moldova (1998-2001).

In a 32-year Foreign Service career, Ambassador Perina specialized in Russian, East European, German and NATO affairs. He served at the U.S. Embassy in Ottawa, the NATO desk of the State Department, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, the U.S. Mission in Berlin, the U.S. Mission to NATO in Brussels, and as Director for European and Soviet Affairs on the National Security Council staff.

Ambassador Perina also served as Senior Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Canadian Affairs, Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade, and Deputy Chairman of the U.S. Delegation to the Vienna Negotiations on Confidence and Security-Building Measures in Europe.

Ambassador Perina earned his B.A. at the University of Chicago and did graduate study at Columbia University where he received his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in European history. In the fall semester of 2010, he was the Scarff Visiting Professor of International Relations at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. He speaks several foreign languages, including Czech, Russian, German and French.

He and his wife, the former Ethel Ott Hetherington, have two daughters and two grandchildren and live in the Washington D.C. area.

Contact Information

Embassy of the U.S.A.
P.O. Box 309
814 99 Bratislava
Slovak Republic

Phone: +421-2-5443 3338
Fax: +421-2-5441 8861

Website: http://slovakia.usembassy.gov/