Sophie and Francois Delattre at The Wolf Trap ball last September. We’re told he’s leaving his post as French ambassador to Washington for New York and the United Nations.
Confirming speculation first reported by Washingtonian in February, the French Embassy says Ambassador François Delattre is departing the nation’s capital to assume the post of French Ambassador to the United Nations. At the same time, the diplomat who currently has that job, Gerard Araud, will succeed Delattre as ambassador to Washington, according to French sources.*
Delattre and his wife, Sophie, arrived in Washington in February 2011, replacing Pierre Vimont, who headed to Brussels to be number two in the European Union’s foreign ministry. They have been popular hosts at their residence on Foxhall Road, a temporary ambassadorial home while France’s grand mansion on Kalorama Road undergoes a long-needed renovation.
Delattre’s departure for the UN, expected for months, was put on hold while President François Hollande decided the fate of France’s Iran negotiator, Jacques Audibert, whom Hollande reportedly wanted at the UN. Ultimately, Hollande chose to promote him to a higher position at the Elysée Palace. Meanwhile, Araud, Delattre’s rumored replacement, got involved in a diplomatic dust-up involving actor Javier Bardem.
Araud, who is openly gay and lives with his partner, became UN ambassador in 2009. A native of Marseille, he studied at the Institute d’Etudes Politiques de Paris, and joined the diplomatic corps in 1982. His first posting was in Tel Aviv, Israel. He also served in Washington before, in the early 1990s, as counselor for Middle East issues.
*This post has been updated from a previous version.
French Ambassador François Delattre Is Leaving Washington For New York
He will become France’s ambassador to the United Nations.
Confirming speculation first reported by Washingtonian in February, the French Embassy says Ambassador François Delattre is departing the nation’s capital to assume the post of French Ambassador to the United Nations. At the same time, the diplomat who currently has that job, Gerard Araud, will succeed Delattre as ambassador to Washington, according to French sources.*
Delattre and his wife, Sophie, arrived in Washington in February 2011, replacing Pierre Vimont, who headed to Brussels to be number two in the European Union’s foreign ministry. They have been popular hosts at their residence on Foxhall Road, a temporary ambassadorial home while France’s grand mansion on Kalorama Road undergoes a long-needed renovation.
Delattre’s departure for the UN, expected for months, was put on hold while President François Hollande decided the fate of France’s Iran negotiator, Jacques Audibert, whom Hollande reportedly wanted at the UN. Ultimately, Hollande chose to promote him to a higher position at the Elysée Palace. Meanwhile, Araud, Delattre’s rumored replacement, got involved in a diplomatic dust-up involving actor Javier Bardem.
Araud, who is openly gay and lives with his partner, became UN ambassador in 2009. A native of Marseille, he studied at the Institute d’Etudes Politiques de Paris, and joined the diplomatic corps in 1982. His first posting was in Tel Aviv, Israel. He also served in Washington before, in the early 1990s, as counselor for Middle East issues.
*This post has been updated from a previous version.
Most Popular in News & Politics
What It Felt Like for a Virginia Marching Band to Win Metallica’s Contest
What’s IN and OUT in DC Restaurant Trends for 2024
Introducing 8 of DC’s Most Stylish
Best of Washington 2023: Things to Eat, Drink, Do, and Know Right Now
Washingtonian Magazine
May 2024: Great Getaways
View IssueSubscribe
Follow Us on Social
Follow Us on Social
Related
13 Major Concerts and Music Festivals in the DC Area This Spring
Mary Timony on Her Emotional New Album, “Untame the Tiger”
The Beatles in DC: A New Exhibit in Maryland Looks Back on Early Beatlemania
Northern Virginia High School Wins Metallica’s Marching Band Competition
More from News & Politics
These Volunteers Wake Up at Dawn to Collect DC’s Dead—and Injured—Birds
Guest List: 5 People We’d Love to Hang Out With This May
Democrats and Republicans Pass Balls, Not Bills, at Congressional Soccer Game
3 New Memoirs by Prominent Women
Everything You Wanted to Know About Urban Bear Sightings but Were Afraid to Ask, Because Who Wants to Get That Close to a Bear?
Rockville Police Are Searching for Culprits of a $4,500 Pickleball Paddle Heist
Dozens of Vintage Planes Will Fly Over the National Mall This Saturday
PHOTOS: “Rupaul’s Drag Race” Queens Work It at the National Mall