Thursday March 14, 2024, the US Senate ratified (89 votes for, 1 vote against) Dennis Hankins (65) as United States Ambassador to Haiti in a bipartisan vote, resolving a vacancy from the start of the last ambassador in office, Michele Sison in October 2021, while Haiti is facing a political and security crisis not seen in decades. Let's remember that Biden had appointed Hanking in May 2023 Hankins https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-39576-haiti-usa-dennis-hankins-next-american-ambassador-to-haiti.html

The White House said it was "urgent" for Hankins to take office at a crucial time for Haiti where gangs threaten to overthrow the country's fragile transitional government.

"This is a critical time to make sure that we have an ambassador in place," National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby told reporters Thursday, noting that violence in the capital Port-au-Prince had only 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, led by Kenya.

Most of his diplomatic career focused on Africa. He also served as deputy director of peacekeeping in Washington. The career diplomat has nearly 40 years of experience in some of the world's toughest posts, including Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, working there during the first war. He also served as ambassador to Mali and Guinea.

He was Consul in Haiti in 1992.

During his career, Hankins served three times as deputy chief of mission in Sudan, Mauritania and Mozambique, principal officer in Sao Paulo and consul general in Riyadh. But most of his diplomatic career appears to have been spent in Africa, which could be beneficial with the upcoming arrival of the Kenyan-led Security Support Mission.

In Washington, Hankins served as deputy director of peacekeeping, senior monitoring officer and head of the Angola office. Hankins earned a bachelor's degree from Georgetown University and a master's degree from the National War College.

Hankins has a wife, Mira, and a son, Danu, who works for the US Navy. He speaks English, French, Portuguese and Indonesian.

HL/ HaitiLibre