Karen Pierce

Her Excellency Dame Karen Pierce currently serves as the British ambassador to the United States. Previously, she served as the UK's permanent representative to the United Nations in New York from 2018 to 2020 and director general for political affairs and chief operating officer of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office from 2016 to 2018. Her diplomatic career includes roles as ambassador to Afghanistan, ambassador to the UN in Geneva, and deputy permanent representative to the UN in New York. Pierce has also held key positions focusing on South Asia, Eastern Europe, and the Balkans, having joined the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in 1981.