James F. Collins

Ambassador James F. Collins is an expert on the former Soviet Union, its successor states, and the Middle East. He served as the U.S. ambassador to the Russian Federation from 1997 to 2001. Before his appointment as ambassador to Russia, he served as ambassador at large and special adviser to the secretary of state for the newly independent states in the mid-1990s and as deputy chief of mission and chargé d’affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow from 1990 to 1993. In addition to three diplomatic postings in Moscow, he also held positions at the U.S. Embassy in Amman, Jordan, and the consulate general in Izmir, Turkey. Before joining the State Department, Ambassador Collins taught Russian and European history, American government, and economics at the U.S. Naval Academy.