US foreign policy and policymaking; Taiwan and cross-strait relations; Vietnam contemporary issues, history, and relations with the United States
Ambassador Raymond Burghardt
Director, East-West Seminars
East-West Center
Raymond Burghardt joined the East-West Center in January 2005 as the Director of East-West Seminars, the Center's division that organizes dialogue and exchange programs. The East-West Center is a national center for public diplomacy established by the U. S. Congress in 1960 to strengthen relations and understanding among the peoples and nations of Asia, the Pacific and the United States through research, education and dialogue.
In February 2006, Secretary of State Rice named Ambassador Burghardt Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Burghardt holds the AIT position concurrently with his position at the East-West Center. AIT is a private entity established in 1979 to manage U.S. relations with Taiwan in the absence of formal diplomatic ties.
Burghardt served as the Ambassador to Vietnam from 2001- September 2004. He was formerly in Taipei as Director of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) from 1999-2001. He previously served as Consul General in Shanghai (1997-1999), as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassies in Manila (1993-96) and Seoul (1990-93), and as Political Counselor in Beijing (1987-89).
Ambassador Burghardt's earlier career included an assignment on the National Security Council staff as Special Assistant to President Reagan and Senior Director of Latin American Affairs. He also served at the U.S. Embassies in Honduras and Guatemala. He was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Colombia before joining the Foreign Service.
Ambassador Burghardt received a B.A. from Columbia College in 1967 and did graduate study at Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs. He speaks Vietnamese, Mandarin Chinese and Spanish.