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Embassy of the United States, Lima

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Coordinates: 12°06′03″S 76°58′07″W / 12.10084°S 76.96852°W / -12.10084; -76.96852
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Embassy of the United States, Lima

The embassy in 2022
Map
LocationEl Polo, Santiago de Surco, Peru
OpeningJuly 4, 1995 (1995-07-04)
Websitepe.usembassy.gov

The Embassy of the United States in Lima is the official diplomatic mission of the United States of America to the Republic of Peru. The chancery is located in the upper-scale district of Santiago de Surco since 1995.

The current U.S. ambassador to Peru is Stephanie Syptak-Ramnath.

History

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Original buildings

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Peru and the United States established relations on May 2, 1826, following Peru's independence from Spain, and relations were elevated to embassy level on 1920.[1][2] The embassy of the United States was housed in different buildings before the opening of its current location. Prior to relations being elevated to embassy, the legation was located at the Quinta Heeren.[3]

In 1925, the U.S. government purchased a property in the Santa Beatriz area of Lima district to house its embassy. The three-floor building was designed by U.S. architect Frederick Larkin, in association with Leland W. King and Paul Jaquet, being built by the Peruvian construction company Florez y Costa, S.A.. Construction began in late 1942. 1,300 m2 (14,000 sq ft) of the 11,600 m2 (125,000 sq ft) property were dedicated to parks and gardens.[4]

The building was designed in a Neocolonial style, featuring a replica travertine marble gate of the Palacio de Torre Tagle on its entrance, as well as on the second floor. The three floors of the building served as either storage (basement), a reception area (first floor) or bedrooms (second floor).[4] The building, located next to a replica of The Three Graces at the fifth block of Arequipa Avenue, and across the street from Washington Square, currently serves as the residence of the U.S. ambassador.[5]

Another building that housed the diplomatic mission of the U.S. was located in the intersection between Wilson Avenue and Spain Avenue, part of the historic center of Lima.[6][7] The original terrain was bought in 1947.[8] After General Juan Velasco Alvarado established a military junta following a successful military coup on 3 October 1968, the embassy was placed under surveillance by the National Intelligence Service, assisted by the Soviet KGB[9] as well as Klaus Barbie, now a naturalised Bolivian intelligence officer.[10]

The embassy was moved from its location near the Civic Center to the Monterrico suburbs due to the internal conflict in Peru, as buildings affiliated with the United States were targeted by the terrorist group Shining Path on several occasions,[11] as well as by the MRTA. By that point, the embassy's building had been bought by Clínica Internacional, owned by Grupo Breca, who moved into the building after the former tenants' departure.[12] The consulate, then located in Miraflores[13] district, also was moved to the new chancery in Monterrico, as it was also targeted on at least one occasion. One such attack was carried out on July 31, 1985.[14]

Current building

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The current building was built in the Monterrico residential area of Santiago de Surco, in or around what was formerly part of the grounds belonging to the La Encalada hacienda.[15] Construction took two years, and the building was inaugurated on July 4, 1995. The building was designed by Bernardo Fort-Brescia, whose façade features a blend of Incan and modern architecture, and also features small windows as a security feature.[16][11] The building's design was met with mixed reactions from both Peruvian and U.S. citizens.[11]

In 2002, two security guards of the embassy were among the dead when a car bomb exploded in the El Polo shopping mall, located across the street. The building received no apparent damage, unlike the hotel and bank located near the location of the blast.[17][18]

The building's façade was lit up with the national colors of Ukraine in response to Russia's invasion of the country in February 2022.[19]

On January 25, 2023, the building's main entrance was blocked by protesters as part of a series of protests by supporters of former president Pedro Castillo.[20]

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See also

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Embassy of the United States in Lima.

References

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  1. ^ "History". U.S. Embassy in Lima.
  2. ^ "U.S. Embassy Lima, Peru". U.S. Embassy in Lima.
  3. ^ Cayetano, José (June 19, 2023). "El prometido regreso a la vida de tres casonas históricas de Lima". El Comercio.
  4. ^ a b "La residencia de la Embajada de EE.UU. de N.A." El Arquitecto Peruano (94): 20–32. April 1, 1945 – via Colegio de Arquitectos del Perú.
  5. ^ "Nota de prensa: Noche de arte será este año el jueves 6 y viernes 7 de mayo" (PDF). Embajada de los Estados Unidos. May 4, 2004. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. ^ Anuario bibliográfico peruano (in Spanish). Lima: Biblioteca nacional / Instituto Nacional de Cultura. 1967. p. 447. Embajada de los Estados Unidos de América [...] Dirección: Av. Wilson s/n. Lima
  7. ^ Ramírez y Berrios, Manuel Guillermo (1999). Memorias...de Memo (in Spanish). Gráfica Horizonte. p. 352. Ante esta situación que fue de dominio público, a pesar de las recomendaciones para que se guardara la mayor reserva, intervino la Embajada de los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica, a cuya sede de la avenida Wilson, hoy Garcilaso de la Vega, acudimos con Clyde, el jueves 18 de mayo de 1967, de lo que dan cuenta algunos diario [sic] como La Crónica, en su sección judicial del viernes 19 del indicado mes.
  8. ^ Echecopar García, Luis (1947). Memoria Correspondiente al año 1947 Presentada por el Ministro de Hacienda y Comercio Dr. Luis Echecopar García (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Lima: Ministerio de Hacienda y Comercio. p. 460.
  9. ^ Andrew, Christopher; Mitrokhin, Vasili (2018). The Mitrokhin Archive II: The KGB in the World. Penguin Books Limited. pp. 79–81. ISBN 9780141977980.
  10. ^ Mark B. Feldman, Foreign Affairs Oral History Collection p. 59, Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training, https://adst.org/OH%20TOCs/Feldman.Mark.pdf
  11. ^ a b c "U.S. inaugurates new embassy in Peru". United Press International. July 4, 1995.
  12. ^ "Amor por la Salud" (PDF). Clínica Internacional: 6. November 27, 2014. En la década de los ochenta, Clínica Internacional es adquirida por la familia Brescia, quienes le dieron un gran impulso a nivel tecnológico y de infraestructura. Luego se compró la antigua sede de la Embajada de Estados Unidos y finalmente la esquina de jirón Washington con avenida España que pertenecía a la familia Olaechea, y que es hoy parte de las oficinas administrativas en su sede de Lima.
  13. ^ Background Notes, Peru. U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Public Affairs, Office of Public Communication. 1994. p. 7. The U.S. Embassy in Peru is located at Avenidas Garcilaso de la Vega and Espana, Lima (tel. 33-8000). The consulate is located at Grimaldo Del Solar 346, Miraflores, Lima (tel. 44-3621).
  14. ^ "Terroristas ametrallan Consulado de los EE. UU". La República. Lugar de la Memoria. August 1, 1985. A las 10 de la noche, dos desconocidos bajaron de un automóvil Volkswagen, color rojo, sin placa de rodaje, y se parapetaron frente a la sede del consulado norteamericano, ubicado en la calle Grimaldo del Solar No. 358. [...] El consulado de los Estados Unidos ocupa las oficinas del primer y segundo piso del edificio de ocho pisos, ubicado a una cuadra de la avenida Benavides y de la Vía Expresa.
  15. ^ Sierralta, Addhemar H. M. (December 17, 2009). "Conde falso y misterios nazis". Blog PUCP.
  16. ^ "The Chancery". U.S. Embassy in Lima. April 27, 2022.
  17. ^ 04.00 EST (March 21, 2002). "Peru car bomb kills eight | World news". The Guardian. Retrieved July 14, 2018.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  18. ^ "CNN.com – Car bomb outside U.S. Embassy in Peru kills 9 – March 21, 2002". Edition.cnn.com. Retrieved July 14, 2018.
  19. ^ Embajada EEUU Perú [@USEMBASSYPERU] (February 28, 2022). "Expresamos nuestra solidaridad con el pueblo de Ucrania y apoyamos el respeto de su soberanía. #StandingWithUkraine 🇺🇦" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  20. ^ "Surco: decenas de protestantes hacen plantón en la fachada de la embajada de Estados Unidos". Trome. January 25, 2023.

12°06′03″S 76°58′07″W / 12.10084°S 76.96852°W / -12.10084; -76.96852

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