Newswise — Ambassador (ret.) Carey Cavanaugh is the director of the University of Kentucky Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce and a 22 year veteran of the U.S. Department of State. He has first-hand experience in conflict resolution, political-military affairs and humanitarian issues. While serving under Presidents Clinton and Bush, Cavanaugh also worked with then-First Lady Hillary Clinton, who will assume the role of Secretary of State in the Obama administration. Cavanaugh is available for interviews, and offers a unique perspective as both an academic and as a retired diplomat familiar with the new Secretary of State. He can speak to a wide range of topics including the question of direct diplomatic relations with Iran, the Russian/Georgian conflict and general questions about possible paths for U.S. diplomacy under the new administration.
In addition to Washington assignments in the State Department, Pentagon, and on Capitol Hill, Ambassador Cavanaugh served in Berlin, Moscow, Tbilisi, Rome and Bern. In 1992, he established the first U.S. Embassy to the new Republic of Georgia, serving as Chargé d'affaires. Under Presidents Clinton and Bush, he spearheaded or helped advance peace efforts involving Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Tajikistan and Turkey. In 2000, he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Ambassador/Special Negotiator responsible for conflicts in Eurasia and Co-Chairman of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group. Later Cavanaugh was elected president of the State Department's Senior Seminar and criss-crossed the globe as a team leader for the Office of the Inspector General. His final government assignment was foreign policy/political advisor to U.S. Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Mike Mullen (the current Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff).
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