WASHINGTON, July 11. /ITAR-TASS/. U.S. President Barack Obama has officially nominated John Tefft as the new U.S. ambassador to Russia.

The nomination has to be confirmed by the Senate.

Moscow has consented to Tefft’s appointment, a diplomatic source told ITAR-TASS earlier this week.

“Russia has given its official agreement with the appointment of John Tefft as the new head of the U.S. diplomatic mission in Moscow,” the source familiar with the situation said.

Tefft served as the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine from November 2009 till August 2013. In 200-2003, he headed the American diplomatic mission in Lithuania and in 2005-2009 in Georgia. In 1996-1999, he was deputy U.S. ambassador in Moscow.

In February of this year, his predecessor, Michael McFaul, resigned from his ambassadorial post in Moscow citing personal and family reasons and left Russia on February 26.