Consulate General of the United States, Saint Petersburg

U.S. Consulate General in St. Petersburg
Map
LocationSaint Petersburg, Russia
AddressCentral District, 15 Furshtatskaya Street
Coordinates59°56′41″N 30°21′16″E / 59.94472°N 30.35444°E / 59.94472; 30.35444
ClosedMarch 30, 2018
WebsiteArchived official website

The U.S. Consulate General in St. Petersburg (Russian: Генеральное консульство США в Санкт-Петербурге) is a former diplomatic mission of the USA in Saint Petersburg, providing consular services to Russian and American citizens in Northwestern Russia. The consulate general ceased its operations on March 30, 2018, at the request of the Russian authorities.[1]

History

The official American diplomatic representation in the Russian Empire was originally located in Saint Petersburg since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1780. However, the credentials of Francis Dana were not accepted by the Russian court, thus making John Quincy Adams the first accredited Ambassador of the United States to Russia, who presented his credentials to Tsar Alexander I of Russia on November 5, 1809.[2] The U.S. Embassy in Russia existed until 1919, when Ambassador David Francis left Russia during the Russian Civil War.

It resumed its work in 1933 in the USSR and in its new capital – Moscow. The U.S. Consulate General in Leningrad was opened in 1972 in the former revenue house of Schreyer.[3] The consular district included ten subjects of the Russian Federation, covering, in addition to Saint Petersburg, Arkhangelsk Oblast, Vologda Oblast, Kaliningrad Oblast, Leningrad Oblast, Murmansk Oblast, Novgorod Oblast, and Pskov Oblast, Republic of Karelia, and Nenets Autonomous Okrug.[1]

In March 2018, following the Poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal, the U.S. authorities announced that the Consulate General of the Russian Federation in Seattle must cease its operations. In response, Russia decided to close the U.S. Consulate in Saint Petersburg and expel 60 American diplomats from Russia.[4][5] On March 30, diplomats removed office equipment, paintings, and furniture from the building, and on the evening of March 31, the mission staff removed the American flag from the building.[1]

The Consulate General of the U.S. in Petersburg included: a consular section, political-economic section, press and culture department, U.S. Commercial Service, and representation of the United States Department of Agriculture.[6]

Consuls General

Term Consul Notes
2002—2005 Morris N. Hughes Jr. [7]
2005—2008 Mary A. Krueger [8]
2008—2011 Sheila Gwaltney [9]
2011—2014 Bruce Turner [10]
2014—2015 Courtney Nemroff acting [11]
2015—2018 Thomas Leary [12]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "U.S. Consulate General in St. Petersburg ceased operations". Archived from the original on 2021-07-09. Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  2. ^ "U.S. Representation in St. Petersburg". Archived from the original on 2004-11-12. Retrieved 2004-11-12.
  3. ^ "What will happen to the buildings of closed consulates in Petersburg". Archived from the original on 2021-07-09. Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  4. ^ "Russia decides to close the U.S. Consulate General in Saint Petersburg". 29 March 2018. Archived from the original on 2021-07-09. Retrieved 2021-07-02.
  5. ^ "Russia expels 60 U.S. diplomats and closes consulate in Petersburg". Deutsche Welle. Archived from the original on 2021-07-11. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  6. ^ "Departments and Agencies". Embassy and Consulates of the U.S. in the Russian Federation. 2017-11-25. Archived from the original on 2017-11-25. Retrieved 2022-06-04.
  7. ^ "Morris "Rusty" Hughes — Consul-General of the United States in St. Petersburg". Archived from the original on 2004-10-16. Retrieved 2004-10-16.
  8. ^ "Mary A. Kruger". Archived from the original on 2006-01-01. Retrieved 2006-01-01.
  9. ^ "Sheila S. Gwaltney, Consul General of the United States of America". Archived from the original on 2008-10-08. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  10. ^ "U.S. Consul General in St. Petersburg Bruce I. Turner". Archived from the original on 2011-12-30. Retrieved 2011-12-30.
  11. ^ "U.S. Consul General in St. Petersburg". Archived from the original on 2015-02-15. Retrieved 2015-02-15.
  12. ^ "Consul General Thomas Leary". Archived from the original on 2017-06-03. Retrieved 2017-06-03.