Matthew Bryza
Encyclopedia
Matthew James Bryza is a United States
diplomat. Currently serves as the United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan
.
with a Bachelor of Arts degree in International relations
and obtained his Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy
of Tufts University
in 1988.
in August 1988. He then served in Poland
in 1989-1991 at the U.S. Consulate in Poznań
and the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw
, where he covered the Solidarity movement, reform of Poland’s security services, and regional politics. From 1991 through 1995, he worked on European and Russian affairs at the State Department. Bryza served at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow during 1995-1997, first as special assistant to Ambassador Thomas R. Pickering
and then as a political officer covering the Russian Duma, Communist Party of the Russian Federation
, and the Republic of Dagestan in the North Caucasus
. He was recalled from Moscow after he allegedly hit a pedestrian in August 1997. From 1997 through 1998, Bryza was special advisor to Ambassador Richard Morningstar
, coordinating U.S. Government assistance programs on economic reforms in Caucasus
and Central Asia
. Starting from July, 1998 he served as the Deputy Special Advisor to the President
and Secretary of State on Caspian Basin Energy Diplomacy, coordinating the U.S. Government’s inter-agency efforts to develop a network of oil and gas pipelines in the Caspian region.
In April 2001, Bryza joined the United States National Security Council
as Director for Europe and Eurasia, with responsibility for coordinating U.S. policy on Turkey
, Greece
, Cyprus
, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and Caspian energy. In June 2005, he assumed duties of Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
for European and Eurasian Affairs. He was responsible for policy oversight and management of relations with countries in the Caucasus and Southern Europe. He also led U.S. efforts to advance peaceful settlements of separatist conflicts
of Nagorno-Karabakh
, Abkhazia
and South Ossetia
. Additionally, he coordinated U.S. energy policy in the regions surrounding the Black
and Caspian Sea
s and worked with European countries on issues of tolerance, social integration, and Islam
.
suggested to Secretary of State
Hillary Rodham Clinton
that Bryza be appointed ambassador to Azerbaijan
. In August 2009, Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Chairman Ken Hachikian sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton outlining the concerns of the Armenian American community regarding what he called the recent "biased remarks by Matt Bryza" the U.S. Co-Chair to the OSCE Minsk Group
charged with helping to negotiate a settlement of the Nagorno Karabagh conflict.
In May 2010, the White House
appointed him as the United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan
. On September 21, 2010, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved his ambassadorial nomination and sent it to the Senate
floor. In a SFRC roll call vote, Democratic Senators Robert Menendez
of New Jersey and Barbara Boxer
of California who are Armenian Caucus members tried to block the nomination voting against Bryza's appointment. On December 29, 2010 Bryza's appointment by President Obama
was confirmed by the White House
as a recess appointment
.
, Georgia in 2009, Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana
, Fourth Class, Republic of Estonia in 2010.
in Istanbul
, Turkey.
Bryza is fluent in Russian
and Polish
, and also speaks German
and Spanish
, and conversational Azerbaijani language
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
diplomat. Currently serves as the United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan
United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan
This is a list of Ambassadors of the United States to Azerbaijan.The United States recognized Azerbaijan's independence on Dec 25, 1991, and announced the establishment of diplomatic relations on February 19, 1992....
.
Education
Bryza graduated from Stanford UniversityStanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
with a Bachelor of Arts degree in International relations
International relations
International relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations , international nongovernmental organizations , non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations...
and obtained his Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy
The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy
The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University is the oldest school in the United States dedicated solely to graduate studies in international affairs. It is regarded as one of the world's foremost schools of international affairs. Every Fall, the school enrolls approximately 265...
of Tufts University
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. It is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts and on the eastern border of France...
in 1988.
Political career
He joined the United States Foreign ServiceUnited States Foreign Service
The United States Foreign Service is a component of the United States federal government under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of approximately 11,500 professionals carrying out the foreign policy of the United States and aiding U.S...
in August 1988. He then served in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
in 1989-1991 at the U.S. Consulate in Poznań
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
and the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, where he covered the Solidarity movement, reform of Poland’s security services, and regional politics. From 1991 through 1995, he worked on European and Russian affairs at the State Department. Bryza served at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow during 1995-1997, first as special assistant to Ambassador Thomas R. Pickering
Thomas R. Pickering
Thomas Reeve "Tom" Pickering , is a retired United States ambassador. Among his many diplomatic appointments, he served as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations from 1989 to 1992.-Early life:...
and then as a political officer covering the Russian Duma, Communist Party of the Russian Federation
Communist Party of the Russian Federation
The Communist Party of the Russian Federation is a Russian political party. It is the second major political party in the Russian Federation.-History:...
, and the Republic of Dagestan in the North Caucasus
North Caucasus
The North Caucasus is the northern part of the Caucasus region between the Black and Caspian Seas and within European Russia. The term is also used as a synonym for the North Caucasus economic region of Russia....
. He was recalled from Moscow after he allegedly hit a pedestrian in August 1997. From 1997 through 1998, Bryza was special advisor to Ambassador Richard Morningstar
Richard Morningstar
Richard L. Morningstar is the Special Envoy of the United States Secretary of State for Eurasian Energy.-Education:Richard Morningstar earned a Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, from Harvard College, and a Master of Laws from Stanford Law School in 1970.-Career:Morningstar started his career with...
, coordinating U.S. Government assistance programs on economic reforms in Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
and Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
. Starting from July, 1998 he served as the Deputy Special Advisor to the President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
and Secretary of State on Caspian Basin Energy Diplomacy, coordinating the U.S. Government’s inter-agency efforts to develop a network of oil and gas pipelines in the Caspian region.
In April 2001, Bryza joined the United States National Security Council
United States National Security Council
The White House National Security Council in the United States is the principal forum used by the President of the United States for considering national security and foreign policy matters with his senior national security advisors and Cabinet officials and is part of the Executive Office of the...
as Director for Europe and Eurasia, with responsibility for coordinating U.S. policy on Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and Caspian energy. In June 2005, he assumed duties of Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
United States Deputy Secretary of State
The Deputy Secretary of State of the United States is the chief assistant to the Secretary of State. If the Secretary of State resigns or dies, the Deputy Secretary of State becomes Acting Secretary of State until the President nominates and the Senate confirms a replacement. The position was...
for European and Eurasian Affairs. He was responsible for policy oversight and management of relations with countries in the Caucasus and Southern Europe. He also led U.S. efforts to advance peaceful settlements of separatist conflicts
Separatism
Separatism is the advocacy of a state of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. While it often refers to full political secession, separatist groups may seek nothing more than greater autonomy...
of Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, lying between Lower Karabakh and Zangezur and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains...
, Abkhazia
Abkhazia
Abkhazia is a disputed political entity on the eastern coast of the Black Sea and the south-western flank of the Caucasus.Abkhazia considers itself an independent state, called the Republic of Abkhazia or Apsny...
and South Ossetia
South Ossetia
South Ossetia or Tskhinvali Region is a disputed region and partly recognized state in the South Caucasus, located in the territory of the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast within the former Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic....
. Additionally, he coordinated U.S. energy policy in the regions surrounding the Black
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
and Caspian Sea
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the largest enclosed body of water on Earth by area, variously classed as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. The sea has a surface area of and a volume of...
s and worked with European countries on issues of tolerance, social integration, and Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
.
Ambassador to Azerbaijan
In June 2009 it was reported that Daniel FriedDaniel Fried
Daniel Fried is a senior career diplomat of the United States who carries the rank of Ambassador. He is presently serving as a Special Envoy to facilitate the closing of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp located in Cuba. Previously, he was the top U.S. diplomat in Europe, and prior to that he was...
suggested to Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton is the 67th United States Secretary of State, serving in the administration of President Barack Obama. She was a United States Senator for New York from 2001 to 2009. As the wife of the 42nd President of the United States, Bill Clinton, she was the First Lady of the...
that Bryza be appointed ambassador to Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
. In August 2009, Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Chairman Ken Hachikian sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton outlining the concerns of the Armenian American community regarding what he called the recent "biased remarks by Matt Bryza" the U.S. Co-Chair to the OSCE Minsk Group
OSCE Minsk Group
The OSCE Minsk Group was created in 1992 by the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe to encourage a peaceful, negotiated resolution to the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh.-Founding and members:The Helsinki Additional Meeting of the CSCE Council on 24 March...
charged with helping to negotiate a settlement of the Nagorno Karabagh conflict.
In May 2010, the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
appointed him as the United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan
United States Ambassador to Azerbaijan
This is a list of Ambassadors of the United States to Azerbaijan.The United States recognized Azerbaijan's independence on Dec 25, 1991, and announced the establishment of diplomatic relations on February 19, 1992....
. On September 21, 2010, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved his ambassadorial nomination and sent it to the Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
floor. In a SFRC roll call vote, Democratic Senators Robert Menendez
Robert Menendez
Robert "Bob" Menendez is the junior United States Senator from New Jersey and a member of the Democratic Party. In January 2006, he was appointed to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Jon Corzine, who resigned upon being elected Governor of New Jersey. Menendez was elected to his own full...
of New Jersey and Barbara Boxer
Barbara Boxer
Barbara Levy Boxer is the junior United States Senator from California . A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives ....
of California who are Armenian Caucus members tried to block the nomination voting against Bryza's appointment. On December 29, 2010 Bryza's appointment by President Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
was confirmed by the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
as a recess appointment
Recess appointment
A recess appointment is the appointment, by the President of the United States, of a senior federal official while the U.S. Senate is in recess. The U.S. Constitution requires that the most senior federal officers must be confirmed by the Senate before assuming office, but while the Senate is in...
.
Awards
Bryza was awarded with Fletcher Young Alumni Award in 2004, Order of the Golden FleeceOrder of the Golden Fleece
The Order of the Golden Fleece is an order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip III, Duke of Burgundy in 1430, to celebrate his marriage to the Portuguese princess Infanta Isabella of Portugal, daughter of King John I of Portugal. It evolved as one of the most prestigious orders in Europe...
, Georgia in 2009, Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana
Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana
The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana was instituted in 1995 to honour the independence of the Estonian state. The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana is bestowed upon the President of the Republic. Presidents of the Republic who have ceased to hold office shall keep the Order of the Cross of...
, Fourth Class, Republic of Estonia in 2010.
Personal life
His first marriage ended in divorce. On August 23, 2007, he married Zeyno BaranZeyno Baran
Zeyno Baran is a Turkish American scholar on issues ranging from US-Turkey relations to Islamist ideology to energy security in Europe and Asia. She is the Director of the Center for Eurasian Policy and a Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute, a think tank located in Washington D.C....
in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Turkey.
Bryza is fluent in Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
and Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
, and also speaks German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
and Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, and conversational Azerbaijani language
Azerbaijani language
Azerbaijani or Azeri or Torki is a language belonging to the Turkic language family, spoken in southwestern Asia by the Azerbaijani people, primarily in Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran...
.