The U.S. Embassy in Rabat has announced the appointment of Benjamin Ziff as Chargé d’Affaires, putting an end to the diplomatic gap ahead of the arrival of the new ambassador, Richard Duke Buchan III.
On its Facebook page, the U.S. Embassy shared a photo of the newly appointed diplomat, accompanied by a post reading: “Meet the incoming Chargé d'Affaires to the U.S. Mission in Morocco, Benjamin Ziff. Help us welcome him by suggesting where in Morocco he should visit first!".
Ziff will temporarily lead the U.S. diplomatic mission in Morocco until the appointment of the new ambassador, Duke Buchan, is finalized. On July 29, 2025, the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved President Donald Trump’s proposal to appoint him.
Trump had nominated Duke Buchan in March 2025, but the procedures required before he officially assumes office have not yet been completed. After his arrival in Rabat, he will present his credentials to Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita, and will then await an audience with the King to formally begin his mission.
According to information available on the official website of the U.S. Department of State, Benjamin Ziff previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, where he oversaw relations with the Nordic and Baltic countries and supervised the European public diplomacy portfolio.
Before that, he was Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá, Colombia. He joined the Foreign Service in 1988 and began his career in public diplomacy assignments in Australia, Israel, Panama, and Peru.
After a year at the National War College in Washington, Ziff became Deputy Director of the Office of Central American Affairs in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, before going on to hold a series of senior public diplomacy positions in Venezuela, Italy, and Iraq.
Ziff was born in California. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from California State University, Long Beach, a master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and another master’s in national security studies from the National War College. He is a recipient of the State Department’s “Morrill Award” for Public Diplomacy and is fluent in Spanish, Hebrew, and Italian.
