Molly Bordonaro addressed the media for the last time as US ambassador to Malta yesterday, saying she and her family would return to Malta as tourists.

Casually dressed before her departure from the ministerial lounge at Malta International Airport, Ms Bordonaro addressed the media with her three young children, Brooke, Colt and Skylar, by her side. They were due to leave the country an hour later.

“We won’t be leaving for good, we’ll be back as tourists and friends,” she said, as a group of the children’s friends waited outside the lounge with their parents to say goodbye.

“My family and I have made several bonds in Malta. The kids had 18 friends spend the night. We have loved the Maltese hospitality.”

Ms Bordonaro, a native of Portland, Oregon, has served as US ambassador to Malta since September 2005. Her term drew to a close with the election of new US president Barack Obama, but came to an official end yesterday.

She said she truly enjoyed her experience in Malta, and she hoped she had helped to better the already strong relationship between Malta and the US.

And undoubtedly she has strengthened the countries’ bilateral relationship, particularly through the signing of several agreements, including Malta’s entry into the US Visa Waiver Programme, the double taxation treaty and the permanent refugee resettlement programme.

In an interview with The Malta Independent recently, Ms Bordonaro said: “I am going to make it a point to spend some time with my successor before he or she comes out here to make sure that the next ambassador builds upon some of the foundations that have been put in place, and hopefully he or she will be open to my advice.”

She returns to the US to a new private sector venture, where she will work on a real estate equity fund focusing on green sustainable development and investing in mixed use commercial properties throughout the country.

The chargé d’affaires at the US Embassy in Malta, Jason Davis, has taken over as interim ambassador until Ms Bordonaro’s successor is appointed later this year, possibly at the beginning of the summer.