Richard Kauzlarich

Director of the Special Initiative on the Muslim World at the U.S. Institute of Peace and former U.S. Ambassador

Ambassador Richard Kauzlarich served as U.S. Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina (1997-1999), and Azerbaijan (1994-1997). He is currently the Director of the Special Initiative on the Muslim World at the U.S. Institute of Peace.

He also was Senior Deputy to the Secretary’s and the President’s Special Representative to the Newly Independent States (NIS) from 1993-1994. In that capacity, he was responsible for conflict resolution in the Caucasus and economic relations with the NIS.

From 1991 until 1993, he was Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European Affairs responsible for relations with the former Soviet Union and economic ties with EU and OECD countries.

He has also served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Organization Affairs where he was responsible for the technical and specialized agencies of the United Nations. He was also Deputy Director of the Policy Planning Staff responsible for global and international economic issues.

Abroad, in addition to his ambassadorial assignments, he served at American Embassies in Togo, Ethiopia, and Israel.

For most of his career, he specialized in economic issues in the Department of State’s Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs.

A retired Foreign Service Officer, with 32 years of service, Ambassador Kauzlarich is now a consultant in Washington, DC.