David Nathan Merrill

David Nathan Merrill (born 1943) is a retired American diplomat who served as the ambassador of the United States to Bangladesh.[1]

David Nathan Merrill
United States Ambassador to Bangladesh
In office February 11, 1994 – May 14, 1997
President	Bill Clinton
Preceded by	William Milam
Succeeded by	John C. Holzman
Personal details
Alma mater	Brandeis University; Tufts University; Harvard University

Merrill (fourth from left) while serving as USAID Mission Director with U.S. Ambassador to indonesia Paul Wolfowitz (fifth from left) and others

Early life

Merrill earned a B.A. from Brandeis University. He completed his Masters in International Affairs from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He completed a Masters in Public Affairs in Asian Economic Development at the John F. Kennedy School of Government of Harvard University. His wife is Irrum Mehmood Merrill.[2]

Career

Merrill served as the USAID Mission Director in Indonesia from 1986 to 1989. In 1992 he was made a career minister in USAID, the highest position in the organization. He served as the USAID Representative to Burma.[2] He served as the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the People's Republic of Bangladesh. He was appointed ambassador on February 11, 1994. He presented his credentials to the President of Bangladesh on April 5, 1994 and served until May 14, 1997.[3] Before that he was the acting assistant administrator of USAID Europe at the State Department.[4]

Merrill served during the first peaceful democratic handover of government in Bangladesh. He received both the President's Meritorious Honor Award and the State Department's Superior Honor Award. He was also awarded the USAID's Distinguished Honor Award. After retiring from the State Department he worked as an consultant for energy companies in Asia. He is the president of the non-profit U.S.-Indonesia Society (USINDO) which works to encourage educational and legislative exchange between the United States and Indonesia.[2][5]

References

1. Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the ... Congress. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1994. p. 1805. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
2. "David Merrill". USINDO. October 3, 2009. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
3. "David Nathan Merrill". history.state.gov. Office of the Historian. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
4. "Bilateral envoys: 6 more named". State. United States Department of State. January 1994. p. 5. The nominations [to ambassadorships] would require Senate confirmation ... Bangladesh–David Nathan Merrill, acting assistant administrator for Europe at A.I.D. until recently, to succeed William B. Milam.
5. "Groups Urge Obama Administration to Reject Dino Patti Djalal as Indonesia's Ambassador". etan.org. Retrieved October 5, 2018.