US charge d’affaires to Ukraine to retire after 3-decade diplomatic career

US Charge D'Affaires to Ukraine Julie Davis will step down from her position later this year and retire, ending a three-decade career as a diplomat, the State Department announced.

State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said on Tuesday that Davis will continue her work at the US Embassy in Kyiv until she officially departs the Ukrainian capital in June 2026, after which she will retire.

Pigott's remarks came in reaction to an earlier Financial Times report, which said, citing three people familiar with her decision, that Davis grew frustrated with her role amid "differences with President Donald Trump over his dwindling support for Ukraine."

Commenting on the report, Pigott described the characterization as "false."

"Ambassador Davis has been a steadfast proponent of the Trump Administration's efforts to bring about a durable peace between Russia and Ukraine," Pigott said.

Davis assumed her post as temporary charge d'affaires last May, replacing Ambassador Bridget Brink, who resigned from her post she assumed in May 2022 due to her opposition to the Trump administration's policy on Ukraine.