WHO IS WHO – Michael Waltz: From scandal to U.S. ambassador to the UN, he will also speak on Kosovo

Michael Waltz has been appointed the new U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and, in the coming period, he will be representing Washington’s positions at the UN Security Council’s regular sessions on Kosovo, where the Secretary-General’s six-month reports on UNMIK are reviewed.

Waltz was nominated for the ambassadorial post by U.S. President Donald Trump, and the Senate confirmed his appointment yesterday.

As part of the appointment procedure, Waltz appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on July 15.

At the hearing regarding his candidacy, he stated that he plans to make the world body “great again.”

“We should have one place in the world where everyone can talk—where China, Russia, Europe, and developing countries can come together and resolve conflicts,” Waltz said about the UN, adding that the organization has, after 80 years, strayed from its core mission of promoting peace.

According to Politico, he questioned the number of UN bodies focusing on climate change and environmental protection.

At the hearing, U.S. media reported, he faced tough questions over a scandal from March this year, while serving as National Security Advisor, known as “Signalgate.”

Waltz mistakenly added Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, to a group chat on the Signal app used to discuss planning attacks on the Houthis in Yemen.

“I take full responsibility. I created the group,” Waltz told Fox News at the time, describing the situation as “awkward and embarrassing.”

At the Senate hearing, he emphasized that “no classified information was shared” in the incident.
Waltz was dismissed from the post of National Security Advisor on May 1.

A member of the Republican Party and a former multi-term Congressman, Waltz served earlier as a U.S. Army Special Forces officer, gaining recognition through missions in Afghanistan and Iraq.

In March, while still serving as National Security Advisor, he stated that resolving the conflict in Ukraine would require “territories in exchange for future security guarantees, the future status of Ukraine,” and that Ukraine’s path to NATO membership—or permanent membership—was “extremely unlikely.”

He is known as a proponent of a hard-line stance toward China.

Regarding the Balkans, Waltz has spoken in the context of NATO enlargement, advocating that every country should have the opportunity to join the Alliance, though this requires “serious engagement in addressing regional tensions.”

He has also criticized Russia’s policy in the Balkans and Moscow’s attempts to expand its influence in the region. In this context, he supported a stronger U.S. military presence in the Balkans, arguing that Russia is a key destabilizing factor in Eastern Europe and the Balkans.
As a politician and retired colonel, he has been linked to several controversies, including ties with private military companies. According to media reports, he acted as an advisor to private security and defense equipment firms, raising concerns among critics who argued that his interest in private defense contracts could influence his decisions as a Congressman, especially on military issues.

He was also criticized for his strong focus on combating Islamic terrorism, which led to accusations that he placed too much emphasis on military security at the expense of diplomatic or other conflict-resolution tools.

27 Years in the Military

Michael Waltz was born on January 31, 1974, in Boynton Beach, Florida, and grew up in Jacksonville. He earned a degree in International Studies from the Virginia Military Institute. He served 27 years in the U.S. Army and National Guard. He is the author of the book Warrior Diplomat: Green Berets’ Battles from Washington to Afghanistan.

He is married to Julia Nesheiwat, who has held senior national security positions in the administrations of George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump, with over 20 years of experience in the U.S. government.