Prior to his appointment to Khartoum, Mr. Fernandez was Director of Press and Public Diplomacy in the Bureau of Near East Affairs. A career member of the Senior Foreign Service, he has served in Afghanistan (2002-2003), Jordan (1999-2002), Guatemala (1996-1999) and Syria (1993-1996) as Embassy Counselor for Public Affairs. He has also served in Iraq, Kuwait, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic and the United Arab Emirates. In Washington, he has been Egypt, Yemen and Sudan Desk Officer in USIA, Director for Iraq Public Diplomacy (2004-2005) and was a member of the 46th Senior Seminar.
Mr. Fernandez came to the United States as a refugee from Cuba in 1959. He has served in the U.S. Army and is a graduate of the University of Arizona and the Defense Language Institute. He is the recipient of the 2006 Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Public Diplomacy, the 1996 Linguist of the Year Award, a 2003 Superior Honor Award for his work in Afghanistan among other awards. He speaks Arabic and Spanish.
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