Blake is a career Foreign Service Officer, having entered the Foreign Service in 1985. He has served at the American Embassies in Tunisia, Algeria, Nigeria and Egypt. He also has held a number of positions at the State Department in Washington. Blake served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Mission in New Delhi, India from 2003 to 2006.


Blake in November 2007
Blake arrived in Sri Lanka on September 8, 2006 to take up his duties as Ambassador to the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and the Republic of Maldives. Blake presented his credentials on September 9 to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. In January 2007 he met with President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom to discuss renewable energy in the Maldives. In February 2007, Blake received minor injuries from a mortar blast while exiting a helicopter at a Sri Lankan air base in Batticaloa, where he was to attend a development meeting.[1] Tamil rebels are believed to be responsible for the mortar attack.[1] The Tigers claimed they were not informed by the government that the ambassador was present and were only returning fire from the Sri Lankan Army.
Blake was known to be engaged in the Sri Lankan civil society and practice what came to be known as "Public Diplomacy" which led some to label him as an interferer in internal affairs of the country.[2]
Blake succeeded Richard Boucher when he assumed his duties as the Assistant Secretary for Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs on May 26, 2009.[3] He was replaced by Nisha Desai Biswal on 23 October 2013 after being nominated by President Obama as U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia.[4][5]