First Saudi female ambassador to the U.S. just started her term

Saudi Arabia's first-ever female ambassador to the U.S., Princess Reema bint Bandar Al-Saud, officially made history after presenting her credentials to the State Department on Thursday - coinciding with the U.S.' independence day. 

Al-Saud announced the beginning of her term in a post uploaded to Twitter, explaining how honored she was to take on the role. The Saudi royal is the 11th Ambassador of the kingdom to the U.S. since 1945, and the first Saudi woman to hold the high-ranking post. 

Earlier this year, a royal decree issued by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman saw the appointment of the princess in the role. 

In April, the newly appointed ambassador took the oath of loyalty before King Salman during a ceremony at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh. 

In a statement on Al-Saud's assumption of her role, the spokesman for the Saudi embassy in the U.S., Fahad Nazer, said: 

"Princess Reema will immediately begin her mission to strengthen the historic partnership between Saudi Arabia and the United States. The Ambassador will bring a fresh perspective on a rapidly changing Saudi Arabia to Washington, continuing to build on key areas of cooperation between our two countries."

The princess takes over the role of her predecessor, MBS' brother Prince Khaled bin Salman, who is now the kingdom's Deputy Minister for Defense.

In her new rank, Al-Saud, who has always been an outspoken advocate for Saudi women's rights, is expected to further champion their cause.

The royal is the daughter of the former Saudi ambassador to Washington, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, and is a graduate of George Washington University. The princess previously served as an adviser to the Crown Prince's office. 

A popular entrepreneur and philanthropist, Al-Saud has made history time and again. 

In 2016, she was appointed Deputy for Planning and Development at the General Sports Authority and used her role to champion women's participation in sport. 

In 2017, she became the first woman to be appointed as president of the Mass Participation Federation. 

Al-Saud's assumption of her role as an ambassador for the kingdom comes at a time when a record number of Saudi women are being appointed in high-rank official roles.

In 2017, Eman bint Abdulla Al-Ghamdi became the first Saudi woman to hold a municipal role after she was appointed the assistant mayor of Al-Khobar municipality for information technology. 

In that same year, the country assigned the role of spokesperson for the kingdom's embassy in Washington to a woman.

Saudi women have also been joining the country's workforce in large numbers as new professions open up to them.