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Ambassador Nicholas Burns, the US Ambassador to the People's Republic of China, will share his thoughts on the current state of US-PRC bilateral relations 45 years after the establishment of full diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Featured Speaker: Nicholas Burns, US Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China
Nicholas Burns is Ambassador of the United States of America to the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Nominated by President Biden, he was confirmed by the US Senate in December 2021.
As Ambassador, he leads a team of experienced, dedicated, and diverse public servants from forty-eight US government agencies and sub-agencies at the US Mission in China, including at the Embassy in Beijing and at the American Consulates in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Wuhan, and Shenyang. He oversees the Mission’s interaction with the PRC on the full range of political, security, economic, commercial, consular, and many other issues that shape this critical relationship.
Ambassador Burns was Goodman Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Relations at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government (2008-2021) where he founded the school’s Future of Diplomacy Project.
He has had a long career in American diplomacy serving six Presidents and nine Secretaries of State. Most recently, he was a member of the Foreign Policy Advisory Board of Secretary of State John Kerry (2014-2017).
While serving at the Department of State as a career Foreign Service Officer, he was Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs (2005-2008) where he led numerous negotiations, including on the US-India Civil Nuclear Deal, a long-term military assistance agreement with Israel, and on Iran’s nuclear program.
As Ambassador to NATO (2001-2005), he led US efforts in Brussels on 9/11 when the Alliance invoked Article 5 of the NATO Treaty for the first time in its history. He managed the combined State-Defense Department US Mission when NATO accepted seven new members in Eastern Europe and embarked on missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Ambassador Burns has received fifteen honorary degrees, the Presidential Distinguished Service Award and the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award. He is the recipient of many other awards, including from the governments of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Kosovo.
Read full bio: Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China
The views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect East-West Center policies or positions.
Ambassador Nicholas Burns, the US Ambassador to the People's Republic of China, will share his thoughts on the current state of US-PRC bilateral relations 45 years after the establishment of full diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Featured Speaker: Nicholas Burns, US Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China
Nicholas Burns is Ambassador of the United States of America to the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Nominated by President Biden, he was confirmed by the US Senate in December 2021.
As Ambassador, he leads a team of experienced, dedicated, and diverse public servants from forty-eight US government agencies and sub-agencies at the US Mission in China, including at the Embassy in Beijing and at the American Consulates in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Wuhan, and Shenyang. He oversees the Mission’s interaction with the PRC on the full range of political, security, economic, commercial, consular, and many other issues that shape this critical relationship.
Ambassador Burns was Goodman Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Relations at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government (2008-2021) where he founded the school’s Future of Diplomacy Project.
He has had a long career in American diplomacy serving six Presidents and nine Secretaries of State. Most recently, he was a member of the Foreign Policy Advisory Board of Secretary of State John Kerry (2014-2017).
While serving at the Department of State as a career Foreign Service Officer, he was Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs (2005-2008) where he led numerous negotiations, including on the US-India Civil Nuclear Deal, a long-term military assistance agreement with Israel, and on Iran’s nuclear program.
As Ambassador to NATO (2001-2005), he led US efforts in Brussels on 9/11 when the Alliance invoked Article 5 of the NATO Treaty for the first time in its history. He managed the combined State-Defense Department US Mission when NATO accepted seven new members in Eastern Europe and embarked on missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Ambassador Burns has received fifteen honorary degrees, the Presidential Distinguished Service Award and the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award. He is the recipient of many other awards, including from the governments of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Kosovo.
Read full bio: Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China
The views expressed are those of the speaker and do not necessarily reflect East-West Center policies or positions.
China Seminars
The China Seminar was established by Dr. Daniel W.Y. Kwok in 1977. Under his guidance, it became a signature program of the Friends of the East-West Center (FEWC) in 2009. The program provides an informal venue for China experts, such as scholars, diplomats, and journalists, to present talks on aspects of China that interest the community and members of the Friends.
