New US Ambassador Discusses Luxembourg Connection, Unity on Ukraine

Chronicle.lu recently got the opportunity to sit down with the new United States (US) Ambassador to Luxembourg, Thomas Barrett, to discuss his first impressions of the Grand Duchy, his own connection to Luxembourg, his priorities in his new role and his thoughts on the current situation in Ukraine.

Thomas "Tom" Barrett, who previously served as Mayor of Milwaukee (from 2004 to 2021) in the US state of Wisconsin, arrived in the Grand Duchy with his wife, Kris, just over one month ago. He presented his diplomatic credentials to His Royal Highness the Grand Duke of Luxembourg on 10 February 2022.

Luxembourg connection

Whilst Ambassador Barrett had not been to Luxembourg before taking on the role, his home state, Wisconsin, has close historical ties with the Grand Duchy. Many Luxembourgish families migrated to the US (mainly the Midwest) in the mid-19th and early 20th centuries, with several thousand Luxembourgers settling in Wisconsin.

Reflecting on his childhood, Ambassador Barrett recalled driving through places called Luxemburg and Belgium with his parents and siblings. "My dad was a jokester", he said. "He would talk about how they were taking us to these foreign countries. We had no idea what a foreign country was. Then years later, it all sort of fits together".

When he was first asked to take on the role of Ambassador to Luxembourg, Ambassador Barrett and his wife decided to visit the nearby Luxembourg American Cultural Society’s (LACS) “Roots and Leaves Museum” in Belgium, Wisconsin. As well as sponsoring the museum and a research centre, LACS helps organise the annual Luxembourg Festival of America (also known as "Luxembourg Fest"). The new US Ambassador noted: "There is a very strong Luxembourg community located there [in Wisconsin], ironically in a community called Belgium".

Discussing his first impressions of Luxembourg, Ambassador Barrett explained that "arriving here, it really felt comfortable, in part because of where I'm from". He added that after his nomination became public, "I was truly surprised by the number of people who would come to me and say that they had Luxembourg roots and equally surprised at the number of people who said they had obtained or were working to obtain dual citizenship".

He went on to compare his arrival in Luxembourg to a lyric in John Denver’s song "Rocky Mountain High": "Coming home to a place he'd never been before".

Role in Luxembourg community

When asked about his role in reaching out to the American business and social communities in Luxembourg, Ambassador Thomas Barrett said he had already met with the business chamber and several American businesses in the Grand Duchy. He has also met with several Luxembourg government officials since his arrival.

In addition to being the representative of US President Joe Biden, the US Department of State and the American people in Luxembourg, the US Ambassador has another role to play: "A big part of it also is forming those ties between the United States and the Luxembourg government […] and then the business community and the overall community". He added: "It's really an outward facing job, trying to be in the community as much as possible".

Priority areas

Concerning the areas on which he would like to focus during his tenure in Luxembourg, Ambassador Barrett said he would like to "strengthen those ties" which already exist between the US and the Grand Duchy, citing issues ranging from finance and economic development to climate change and educational exchange programmes.

"The United States and Luxembourg have a very strong relationship and that’s a wonderful starting point", he said. "We have a shared history, we share values, we share a belief in openness and in democracy”. He added: “I view myself as lucky that I’m coming to a country that has such a strong starting point. […] And so, my job is to take something that’s good and make it even better".

Another area in which the US and Luxembourg strongly cooperate is space. "We’re very fortunate to have an expert here [at the US Embassy] who is assigned to Luxembourg and he has close ties with the space industry", the US Ambassador noted.

Ukraine crisis

On the subject of the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ambassador Barrett commented: "I don’t know that anybody foresaw that we would have this tumultuous turn of events here in Europe, which is tragically and unfortunately consuming a lot of energy and is something that we in the United States take extremely seriously and view it as a major concern for Ukraine, for all of Europe and really for the stability of the world". He added that he has been "extremely impressed" by the "ethical and appropriate response" of the Luxembourg Government to current developments in Ukraine.

The US Ambassador continued: "As tragic as this is and as unsettling as this is, it is very impressive to see a level of coordination, cooperation and communication by essentially all but a few countries in the world".

Independence Day

On a more positive note, when asked how the US Embassy in Luxembourg expected to celebrate Independence Day (4 July) this year, Ambassador Barrett said: "safely". With this being "one of the major events in every United States Embassy around the world", preparation will begin "very soon", he noted, with careful consideration going in to how to organise such an event from a health perspective.

"It is certainly something that is going to take a lot of work for the entire embassy and the American community", he said. "But it's a great day of celebration. […] People are celebrating democracy and celebrating America".

With the last two years’ celebrations having been "very limited", the US Ambassador said that it would "feel good to celebrate the 4th of July again".

Citing former US Ambassadors to Luxembourg, such as Perle Mesta (1949 – 1953), on whom the lead character of Broadway musical "Call Me Madam" was based, Patricia Roberts Harris (1965 – 1967), who made history as the first female African American Ambassador, John E. Dolibois (1981 – 1985), who was born in Luxembourg and after whom the US Ambassador’s residence is named, and James Hormel (1999 – 2001), the US’ first openly gay male ambassador, Ambassador Barrett concluded by saying he felt "honoured to join the ranks of those individuals and others who have served in this position".