Diplomatic SOCIETY met with H.E. Arthur Graham Fisher, Ambassador of the USA to Austria, to talk about the strong bilateral and economical ties between the two countries as well as the 250-year celebration of the Declaration of Independence.
You are representing the USA in Austria since November 2025—can you tell us a bit about your objectives and plans for your term as Ambassador?
We want to strengthen the relations between Austria and the United States, that is really important to us. We celebrate the history that we share together. We very much want to focus on strengthening our economic ties. We want to help Austrian companies that want to do business in the United States and we also want to help US companies to do business in Austria.
I also had the opportunity to attend the Red Bull distribution facility opening in Concord, North Carolina, in September 2025. It is a 1.7 billion dollar facility and will create 800 new jobs—it is the largest investment an Austrian company has ever made in the state of North Carolina. I love that, as someone coming from a business background. I also recently met with executives from Microsoft who shared information about the data center that they just built in Austria, also a 1.7 billion dollar investment—the largest investment any company has made in Austria in years. That’s what’s exciting in this role and something we are looking forward to strengthening.
Additionally, our security cooperation is very important to us. We look to Austria as a trusted partner, very important to the United States. And we work very closely with Austria. What we are looking to in the future is for Austria to be a strong partner capable of, on the world stage, deterring, the threats we now face in the world. Our law enforcement cooperation is also very important. I’m most proud as Ambassador of some of the things that no one will ever know about, some of the things we do together to keep people safe. So many people may go to a concert and go with their family, and they are safe, and they are not aware of all the work that went on together between our two governments to ensure their safety and security. So we are very proud of that, and I so look forward to strengthening that. Most importantly, I believe, is the people-to-people connection and relationship that we share. We’ve done wonderful events with the Austro-American Society, and we’ve been able to get out in Austria from Graz to Vorarlberg and Tyrol, and meet people, and that has been a really great part of this journey. On the human connection, we find that Austrians love America and Americans love Austrians. That’s something we want to keep strengthening, whether through cultural festivals like Bregenz or our Fulbright program. There are so many ways we can continue to work together. Strengthening all those bonds—economic prosperity for both our countries, security and law enforcement cooperation, our cultural ties—those are our main objectives.
What are your impressions of Austria?
It has been such a wonderful experience, meeting with people, attending the Opera Ball and other cultural events. This makes me very optimistic about the future. The Austrian people are wonderful. My very first phone call after being nominated as Ambassador was from H.E. Petra Schneebauer, the Austrian Ambassador to the US. I was in South Africa when she called me and told me how happy she was and saying she would be there to support. She actually came to my hearing in the U.S. Senate, and she and I became close friends. That really symbolizes our friendship and partnership between the United States and Austria.
Is this your first posting as Ambassador? Did you choose to come to Austria?
This is my first posting as Ambassador. I was always in the private sector, in a family-owned real estate business that my mom and dad started fifty years ago, and my twin sister now runs. The post was offered to me by President Donald J. Trump, and I was so honoured to accept. I really feel like I hit the jackpot.
What do you hope to look back on after your term as Ambassador?
We have a wonderful team, not only here at the US embassy but also our colleagues in the Austrian government. I hope after this term of three years that we all look back and we’re all proud of what we helped accomplish. I hope we also look back and feel we did something to strengthen the relationship and make it better for both the people in Austria and the United States. I was on a call recently with ten business leaders in Austria that have representatives in the US and are looking to make more substantial investments in the United States, since they have realized that the United States is an attractive marketplace. It’s the largest economy in the world, and for these businesses, it represents a significant amount of their worldwide revenue. They see America as a place for growth. As Ambassador, I want to facilitate that growth in the United States.
How does being a diplomat differ from your former profession in real estate?
I realized from my 28 years of working in real estate that there are many similarities between real estate and diplomacy. In my Senate confirmation, they asked what from your past qualifies you to be an Ambassador. When I thought about it, there are a lot of similarities. In real estate, you have to bring together two parties—who often have differing ways of looking at something—
and you are bringing them together for a mutually agreeable outcome. And I think in essence that is diplomacy. Diplomacy is also all about relationships, and that’s why it is so important that us being willing to engage and sit down and talk to each other, even when we have differences
of opinion.
Can you tell us a bit about the significance of the Semiquincentennial for your country? How will it be celebrated?
It is our 250th Birthday and an important milestone for America. We are celebrating the Declaration of Independence and the importance of that document not just for America, but for the whole world. This document laid down the concept of every human being created equal and that human beings having inalienable rights that allow them to do certain things and share certain freedoms. This is not only the cornerstone of America but also the cornerstone of democracy throughout the world. That’s what we are celebrating the whole year. There is a number of celebrations planned, not only 4th of July celebrations and Memorial Day, but also the United States is excited to host the FIFA World Cup and celebrate our contributions to sports. It’s a big deal for us. We were honored to celebrate 4th of July in Vienna, where the great singer Mary Millbin was our guest. She has performed for four US-Presidents and has a wonderful voice.