Research
- +8
William J. Burns, Michael Chertoff, Catherine Ashton, …
{
"authors": [
"William J. Burns"
],
"type": "legacyinthemedia",
"centerAffiliationAll": "",
"centers": [
"Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center"
],
"collections": [],
"englishNewsletterAll": "",
"nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
"primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"programAffiliation": "",
"programs": [],
"projects": [],
"regions": [
"North America",
"United States",
"Middle East",
"North Africa",
"East Asia",
"Russia",
"Eastern Europe",
"Egypt",
"Gulf",
"Levant",
"Maghreb"
],
"topics": [
"Political Reform",
"Security",
"Democracy",
"Foreign Policy"
]
}
Source: Getty
In The Media
A Conversation With Ambassador William Burns
Ambassador William Burns, president of the Carnegie Endowment, discusses his diplomatic career and the issues currently impacting today’s world.
Published on Mar 2, 2015
Source: NPR’s Diane Rehm Show
The late American diplomat Richard Holbrooke once said diplomacy was like jazz – “a constant improvisation on a theme.” It’s something Ambassador William J. Burns would know. He spent 33 years in the U.S. Foreign Service, playing the role of negotiator in many of the crises of our time. He was ambassador to Russia and Jordan, and he rose to become Deputy Secretary of State, only the second serving career diplomat elevated to that role. He retired from the Foreign Service recently to run the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Host Tom Gjelten speaks with Ambassador William Burns on his lengthy career and current issues facing today's world.
This broadcast originally appeared on NPR’s The Diane Rehm Show.
About the Author
William J. Burns
Former Career Diplomat
A former career diplomat, William J. Burns served as director of the CIA, deputy secretary of State, and ambassador to Russia and Jordan. Burns was also president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace from 2015 to 2021.
- Reimagining Transatlantic Relations
- A New U.S. Foreign Policy for the Post-Pandemic LandscapeCommentary
William J. Burns
Recent Work
Political ReformSecurityDemocracyForeign PolicyNorth AmericaUnited StatesMiddle EastNorth AfricaEast AsiaRussiaEastern EuropeEgyptGulfLevantMaghreb
Carnegie India does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie India
- AI in Outer Space: Opportunities, Risks, and the Governance GapCommentary
How is AI reshaping space security, creating governance challenges, and where does international diplomacy stand today?
Tejas Bharadwaj, Almudena Azcárate Ortega
- Threading the Needle: India’s Path Forward with ChinaPaper
After the chill in ties between 2020 and 2024 that brought India–China relations to their lowest point in several decades, the two countries have engaged each other afresh. This paper argues that there are predominantly four imperatives guiding India’s approach to China, and they exist in an order of priority.
Saheb Singh Chadha
- Managing Divergence: India’s BRICS Presidency in 2026Article
This piece argues that India’s central challenge is not managing a single flashpoint but resolving the underlying tension between expansion and institutional coherency of the BRICS grouping.
Vrinda Sahai
- India–Africa Strategic Partnership: Challenges, Potential, and Possible PathwaysArticle
A partnership between India, a country of subcontinental size, and Africa, a continent of fifty-four countries, may seem asymmetric until one notes that both are home to nearly the same number of people—1.4 billion. This essay spells out the existing challenges to the partnership, its optimal potential, and the possible pathways to realize it over the next quarter-century.
Rajiv Bhatia
- The Unresolved Challenges in U.S.–India Semiconductor CooperationCommentary
The U.S.–India semiconductor cooperation story is well-stocked with top-level strategic intent. What remains unresolved, however, are some underlying challenges that will determine whether the cooperation actually functions. Three such friction points stand out.
Shruti Mittal
