Vajda, Thomas Laszlo – Union of Burma – May 2020

REPORT FOR THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS

UNITED STATES SENATE

SUBJECT:            Ambassadorial Nomination:  Certificate of Demonstrated Competence — Foreign Service Act, Section 304(a)(4)

POST:                  Union of Burma

CANDIDATE:      Thomas Laszlo Vajda

Thomas Vajda, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, class of Minister Counselor, is currently a Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs in the State Department, Washington, D.C.   His previous leadership positions overseas include serving as Consul General of the U.S. Consulate General in Mumbai, India, and as Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Rangoon, Burma.  In Washington Mr. Vajda held positions as Deputy Coordinator of the Office of Assistance Coordination for the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs (NEA) and as Office Director of the Office of the Middle East Partnership Initiative, also in the NEA Bureau.     Mr. Vajda’s considerable leadership experience coupled with his past service in a senior role in Burma and his role in managing complex policy and assistance issues makes him an excellent candidate to serve as Ambassador to the Union of Burma.

Mr. Vajda’s other assignments include service as the Deputy Office Director of the Office of Australian, New Zealand, and Pacific Island Affairs in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affair, as a Political-Military Affairs Officer in the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, and as Political/Economic Section Chief of the U.S. Embassy in Tirana, Albania.  He was assigned as a Desk Officer in the Office of Japanese Affairs and prior to that as a Desk Officer in the Office of Korean Affairs.

Mr. Vajda received a B.A. degree from Stanford University in 1988 and an M.A. degree from Tufts University, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in 1991.  He is the recipient of numerous awards, including seven individual Superior Honor Awards.