The US Senate has confirmed the appointment of George Tsunis as the new US Ambassador to Greece. 54-year-old Tsunis is a Greek-American lawyer and businessman with extensive experience in the tourism industry.
He is the founder and CEO of the Chartwell Hotels group. This company has a strong presence in all the northeastern states and collaborates with important names in the field, such as “Hilton”, “Marriott” and “Intercontinental”.
He is the son of Greek emigrants from Nafpaktos and is father of three.
He is active in the Greek Orthodox Church.
He is well known to the Greek American community and has been reportedly involved in major institutions in the community, including the Archdiocesan Council of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, the Faith and Leadership 100 Endowments, the Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC), and the Hellenic Initiative.
After an unsuccessful attempt to become President Obama’s Ambassador to Norway in 2014, Tsunis took on new private and public sector opportunities.
As a political appointee, Tsunis’ political relationships will be particularly important for Greece. He has a long relationship with US President Joe Biden, having served as the chair of Greek-Americans for Obama-Biden in 2012. He knows Secretary Antony Blinken quite well. He is very close to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez.
