Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also paid tribute to Mr Stevens's "two decades of dedication to advancing closer ties with the people of the Middle East and North Africa".
"Chris was committed to advancing America's values and interests, even when that meant putting himself in danger," Ms Clinton said.
'Unflappable personality'
In an article in a state department publication, Mr Stevens described arriving in Benghazi in April 2011 in a Greek cargo ship to make contact with the TNC.
Mr Stevens and his team facilitated "non-lethal military assistance" to the TNC, the article said.
In diplomatic cables leaked by the Wikileaks site, Mr Stevens had earlier described Col Muammar Gaddafi as "notoriously mercurial" and wrote that he could be an "engaging and charming interlocutor".
A speaker of Arabic and French, Mr Stevens had also been posted elsewhere in the region during his career, including Jerusalem, Damascus and Cairo.
He had worked in several posts in Washington, including at the state department's Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs.
Linkback: https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=54628.0