The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on Thursday voted to approve U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Richard Mills, Armenian National Committee of America reported.

The Committee cleared the way for confirmation by the full Senate.

If confirmed by the Senate, Mills will replace current ambassador John Heffern.

Mills is currently Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy Beirut, where he began his tour in 2012.

Earlier he worked in Malta, Paris, Dublin, Islamabad, Riyadh and London. In early 90s he also worked as a desk officer for the newly independent Armenia and Azerbaijan, followed by a tour as a political officer at the U.S. Consulate in St. Petersburg, Russia.

His foreign languages are French and Russian.