Meet the Ambassador: Richard L. Buangan

Leading U.S. embassies around the world are diplomats who hold the august title of “ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the United States of America.”

An ambassador is not only the chief of a diplomatic mission, but also the highest-ranking diplomat, representing one country’s head of state to the head of state of a host country.

Whether one has made a career in the U.S. Foreign Service or in the world of business, in academe or elsewhere, being asked by the president (and confirmed by the U.S. Senate) to represent America as ambassador to another nation is the job and honor of a lifetime.

Most U.S. ambassadors rise through the ranks of the foreign service, having served in several countries over the course of a long career. About a third are political appointees. In this new series, ShareAmerica introduces you to ambassadors representing the United States around the world.

U.S. Ambassador to Mongolia Richard L. Buangan

Richard L. Buangan joined the foreign service in 1999 and in 2022 became ambassador to Mongolia. ShareAmerica asked him about his personal path and his work in Mongolia.

Question: What inspired you to serve as a diplomat?
Answer: My father’s service in the U.S. Navy may have given me a “travel itch” that I have had since I was a boy. I loved the idea of living overseas, learning new languages and introducing my new friends in new places to everything about America.

Q: What advice would you give to someone considering a career in diplomacy?
A: You should care about what’s going on beyond America’s borders.  Read international news, and books about moments in world history and the people who shaped them.  And travel as much as you can.

Q: Where is your hometown in the United States, and what should someone who hasn’t been there know about it?
A: Because I was a “Navy brat“ growing up, I am proud that I can claim both San Diego, California, and Waipahu, Hawai’i, as my “hometowns.” Both cities have significant Filipino immigrant populations, so the best lumpia and pancit are there.

Q: How are the United States and Mongolia working together and what efforts are you particularly pleased to see?
A: There are many initiatives bringing our two countries and peoples together. We are:

• Helping entrepreneurs set up their small businesses through USAID’s Building Economic Stability through Tourism (BEST) program;
• Guiding young Mongolians to get into U.S. colleges through our competitive College Club program;
• Teaching English in the farthest parts of the country with Peace Corps volunteers;
• Assisting the Mongolian military become better UN peacekeepers;
• Training parliamentarians, judges, and civil society in ways to make their legal system work well for Mongolian citizens;
• And working with the Mongolian government through a Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) compact to build infrastructure to provide clean water to the residents of Mongolia’s capital, Ulaanbaatar.

Q: As a U.S. diplomat, you literally “share America” as part of your job. What do you want the people of Mongolia to know about the United States and the American people?
A: We have a lot in common. Our two countries are fiercely patriotic, we love our freedoms, and we’re very proud of our history and culture. I hope more Americans and Mongolians will travel to each other’s countries in the next few years to learn from each other.

Learn about the U.S. bilateral relationship with Mongolia and how U.S. diplomats’ hometowns influence their work.