It was with a heavy heart that on July 22 we said farewell to Ambassador Michael C. Polt, who flew home to the United States after over two and a half years in Estonia. His contributions have been many, and he has left a legacy of new partnerships and friendships.
Until Ambassador-designate Jeffrey Levine arrives in September, Robert Gilchrist, the embassy’s Deputy Chief of Mission, will be Chargé d’Affaires. Mr. Gilchrist has served in Tallinn since 2010 and is a 22-year veteran of the U.S. Career Foreign Service with postings most recently in Baghdad from 2006 to 2007, where he was the Deputy Political Counselor, and in Washington, where he was the Director of Nordic and Baltic Affairs in the U.S. Department of State from 2007 to 2009.