THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2026 87 n Timothy Michael Carney, 82, a retired U.S. Foreign Service officer and two-time ambassador, died on August 10, 2026, in Cambridge, Mass., from esophageal cancer. Mr. Carney was born on July 12, 1944, in St. Joseph, Mo. His father was a career Army officer and served as a judge advocate general. His mother was an English teacher. The family moved frequently in the U.S. and abroad. Carney credited the family’s two years in Taiwan for sparking his interest in Asia. He received a bachelor’s degree in history from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1966, followed by one year studying French in Grenoble. He became fluent in French, Khmer, and Thai. In 1967 Mr. Carney joined the State Department as a political officer. He was assigned to Vietnam in 1968, on the eve of the Tet offensive. Next was Lesotho, and then Cambodia (1972–1975), where he served until he was evacuated by helicopter as the Khmer Rouge surrounded Phnom Penh. During three years in wartime Cambodia, Mr. Carney widened the U.S. embassy’s understanding of the society and events on the ground, despite being told to avoid taking risks. After academic leave at Cornell (1976–1977), he was posted to Udorn, Thailand, in 1978, where he monitored events in Cambodia following Vietnam’s invasion and takeover. A year later he went to Bangkok as political officer. There Mr. Carney met and married Victoria Butler, a journalist, in 1983. Posted to South Africa next (1983– 1986), his portfolio also included Southwest Africa. He joined the Wildlife Conservation Societies of Zambia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa and developed a passion for wild game hunting following principles of sustainable conservation. After a tour in Indonesia (1987–1989), he returned to the United States as national security adviser to President George H.W. Bush on Southeast Asian and Pacific Island affairs (1990–1991). In the early 1990s, Mr. Carney was seconded to the UN Transitional Peacekeeping Authority of Cambodia (UNTAC) (1992–1993). He also served as the special political adviser to the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General in Somalia (1993), and as a member of the UN Observer Mission in South Africa (1994). Mr. Carney was promoted to deputy assistant secretary for South Asian affairs in 1994 and appointed U.S. ambassador to Sudan in June 1995, a time of upset in the bilateral relationship. Against Carney’s advice, the Clinton administration decided to shutter the embassy in 1997. Ambassador Carney’s final posting was as U.S. ambassador to Haiti (1998–1999), another country in turmoil where he continued his practice of immersing himself in the local society while routinely challenging Washington’s assessment. After retiring in 1999, Amb. Carney and his wife produced the book Sudan: The Land and the People (2006). Amb. Carney is also the author of “Communist Party Power in Kampuchea: Documents and Discussion” (1977) and two books on Cambodia. Additionally, he advised the director of the 1984 film, “The Killing Fields.” Recently, he helped publish the English translation of Regrets for a Khmer Soul (2026), the only book by a Cambodian warning about the Khmer Rouge before their 1975 takeover. Known by his colleagues as “the unflappable Tim Carney,” Amb. Carney was called out of retirement to serve in the reconstruction of Iraq and Afghanistan after 9/11. Friends and family members remember him as a great storyteller, a man who was intensely curious and sharp-witted, and a loyal friend with a delightful sense of humor. Amb. Carney is survived by his wife, Victoria; sister, Sheri Carney; Anne Carney, his daughter from a previous marriage; son-in-law, John Ochsendorf; and two grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests supporting the MIT Class of 1966 Doc Edgerton Scholarship Fund. n Tania Chomiak-Salvi, 58, a retired Foreign Service officer, died on May 5, 2026, at her home in Washington, D.C., surrounded by loved ones. Ms. Chomiak-Salvi was born on June 10, 1967. She graduated from McLean High School, received a BA from the University of Virginia in 1989, and earned an MA in law and diplomacy from Tufts University’s Fletcher School in 1993. That same year, Ms. Chomiak-Salvi joined the U.S. Foreign Service at the State Department, specializing in public diplomacy. Prior to that, she had worked on U.S.-Soviet exchange programs, including in Ukraine and Russia. During a 25-year diplomatic career, Ms. Chomiak-Salvi served in a variety of postings in Europe and in the U.S., beginning as the press attaché in the newly established U.S. embassy in Almaty (1993–1996). She served as press officer and humanitarian affairs adviser in the U.S. Mission to the United Nations (1997– 1999), assistant press attaché and assistant cultural attaché in London (1999–2000), cultural attaché in Warsaw (2000–2002), and counselor for public diplomacy in Brussels (2009–2012). IN MEMORY
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODIyMDU=