Richard Holbrooke

Richard Holbrooke
United States Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan
In office
January 22, 2009 – December 13, 2010
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byMarc Grossman
22nd United States Ambassador to the United Nations
In office
September 7, 1999 – January 20, 2001
PresidentBill Clinton
Preceded byPeter Burleigh (acting)
Succeeded byJohn Negroponte
18th Assistant Secretary of State for European and Canadian Affairs
In office
September 13, 1994 – February 21, 1996
PresidentBill Clinton
Preceded byStephen A. Oxman
Succeeded byJohn C. Kornblum
United States Ambassador to Germany
In office
October 19, 1993 – September 12, 1994
PresidentBill Clinton
Preceded byRobert M. Kimmitt
Succeeded byCharles E. Redman
14th Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs
In office
March 31, 1977 – January 20, 1981
PresidentJimmy Carter
Preceded byArthur W. Hummel Jr.
Succeeded byJohn H. Holdridge
Personal details
Born
Richard Charles Albert Holbrooke

(1941-04-24)April 24, 1941
New York City, U.S.
DiedDecember 13, 2010(2010-12-13) (aged 69)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouses
  • Larrine Sullivan
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1964; div. 1972)​
  • Blythe Babyak
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1977; div. 1978)​
  • ​
    (m. 1995)​
Children2
EducationBrown University (BA)

Richard Charles Albert Holbrooke (April 24, 1941 – December 13, 2010) was an American diplomat and author. He was the only person to have held the position of Assistant Secretary of State for two different regions of the world (Asia from 1977 to 1981 and Europe from 1994 to 1996).

From 1993 to 1994, he was U.S. Ambassador to Germany. He was long well-known among journalists and in diplomatic circles. Holbrooke became familiar to the wider public in 1995 when he, together with former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt, brokered a peace agreement among the warring factions in Bosnia leading to the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords. Holbrooke was a prime contender to succeed Warren Christopher as Secretary of State but was passed over in 1996 as President Bill Clinton chose Madeleine Albright instead.

From 1999 to 2001, Holbrooke served as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. He was an adviser to the presidential campaign of Senator John Kerry in 2004. Holbrooke then joined the 2008 presidential campaign of Senator Hillary Clinton and became a top foreign policy adviser. Holbrooke was considered a likely candidate for Secretary of State had Kerry or Hillary Clinton been elected president. In January 2009, Holbrooke was appointed as a special adviser on Pakistan and Afghanistan, working under President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.[1] During his career, Holbrooke worked to improve the lives of refugees, particularly the Hmong of Indochina.[2] On December 13, 2010, Holbrooke died from complications of an aortic dissection.[3]

Holbrooke's unfulfilled ambition was to become Secretary of State; he, along with George Kennan and Chip Bohlen, were considered among the most influential U.S. diplomats who never achieved that position. Several considered Holbrooke's role in the Dayton Accords to merit the Nobel Peace Prize.[4][5][6][7]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Foreign Policy was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Alter, Jonathan (December 14, 2010). "Richard Holbrooke: An American in Full". Newsweek. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  4. ^ Moreau, Ron (December 14, 2010). "Holbrooke in the Trenches". Newsweek. Retrieved April 29, 2010.
  5. ^ Alter, Jonathan (January 16, 2011). "Richard Holbrooke's Lonely Mission". Newsweek. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  6. ^ "Richard Holbrooke: A Disappointed Man". Newsweek. December 14, 2010. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  7. ^ "An American in Full". Newsweek. December 14, 2010. Retrieved October 18, 2018.