Philip Goldberg
Encyclopedia
Philip S. Goldberg is a United States diplomat who was Ambassador to Bolivia
and was expelled by the Bolivian government in 2008, the eighth chief of mission in US diplomatic history to be declared persona non grata
. He was nominated on October 23, 2009 to the Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research
and confirmed by the Senate on February 9, 2010.
. Before joining the Foreign Service, Goldberg, who speaks fluent Spanish, worked as a liaison officer between the City of New York City
and the United Nations
and consular community.
. As Special Assistant to Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, Goldberg was a member of the American negotiating team in the lead-up to the Dayton Peace Conference and Chief of Staff for the American Delegation at Dayton. From 1996 to 1999 Goldberg served as Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of State. From 1998 to 2000 Goldberg served as Executive Assistant (1998–2000) to the Deputy Secretary of State. In 2001 Goldberg served as a senior member of the State Department team handling the transition from the Clinton to Bush Administrations. From January 2001 to June 2001 Goldberg served as acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs. From 2001 to 2004 Goldberg served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Santiago, Chile
.
to head the new government, Goldberg emphasized the importance of the government's success. Haradinaj's election had been considered controversial because Haradinaj had recently been questioned about war crimes and there were indications that a UN war-crimes tribunal might be preparing to indict him. Haradinaj was subsequently charged with war crimes during the Kosovo War by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) at The Hague but was acquitted of all charges on April 3, 2008.
In April, 2005 Richard Holbrooke wrote in an op-ed piece in the Washington Post that Goldberg had warned that the situation in Kosovo was volatile and that Secretary of State Rice had sent Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns to Europe to advise our allies of the instability and the likelihood of increased violence in Kosovo unless steps were taken to speedily resolve Kosovo's final status. On February 1, 2006 Goldberg talked to Radio Free Europe about his work as Chief of Mission and whether the question of Kosovo's status could be resolved within the year. Goldberg said the process was "well under way".
President George W. Bush officially nominated Philip S. Goldberg as Ambassador to Bolivia and his nomination was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on August 3, 2006. Goldberg presented his credentials to Bolivian President Evo Morales Ayma on October 13, 2006.
In October, 2007 Bolivian newspaper La Razón reported that after Morales' remarks about the United Nations, Morales prohibited Goldberg from entering the Presidential Palace after Goldberg remarked that he wouldn't be surprised if Morales also requested the move of Disney World. Morales said that Goldberg had been making fun of Morales and of the Bolivian people and demanded an apology. Goldberg reportedly sent a written apology, indicating that his statement regarding Disney World had been a joke made to relax tension between Bolivia and the United States.
reported that thirty Peace Corps
volunteers had been asked "to basically spy" on Cubans
and Venezuela
ns in Bolivia by US Embassy Security Officer Vincent Cooper. Peace Corps Deputy Director for Bolivia
Doreen Salazar was present at the meeting and asserts that not only did she protest to the embassy later, but that on the spot Peace Corps staff made clear that these instructions were not mandatory. She also indicated that she had never heard such instructions made before and that the embassy agreed it was inappropriate. In their statement, the U.S. Embassy in La Paz acknowledged that the volunteers had received "incorrect information", indicating that "As soon as this was brought to our attention, appropriate measures were taken to assure that these errors would not be repeated." They indicated that the briefing had been intended for embassy staff.
Peace Corps issued a press release reiterating in no uncertain terms that the corps is not involved in any intelligence
gathering.
In February 2008 it was also alleged by a visiting American Fulbright scholar that US Embassy Security Officer Vincent Cooper, in a routine safety briefing, asked the student to report the names and locations of "any Venezuelans or Cubans in the field—doctors, field workers, etc." The student alleged this incident took place in November, 2007, four months after the initial complaint by the Peace Corps was lodged with the Embassy. This student's reports were the initial trigger for Cooper's recall to the United States "to be questioned."
On February 12, 2008, CNN reported that Bolivian President Evo Morales had declared Cooper "undesirable". According to CNN, Ambassador Goldberg indicated that the embassy had never "asked anyone to spy."
The United States Peace Corps issued a press release reiterating that no Peace Corps volunteers had participated in intelligence activities and that it remained Peace Corps policy that there was an absolute separation between "any official duties pertaining to U.S. foreign policy, including the reality or the appearance of involvement in intelligence related activities." The Press Release added that "Consistent with the policy of every administration since 1961, Director Ron Tschetter, himself a former Volunteer in India (1966-1968), has been very clear in re-affirming this long standing policy and, once again, stressing that Peace Corps Volunteers work on community service and nothing else."
In an interview with Newsweek magazine in September 2008, Goldberg said that the incident had been overblown. According to Goldberg, Cooper had incorporated into the security briefing warnings generally provided to "direct American employees" advising them to exercise caution when dealing with potentially exploitative individuals from third countries. While acknowledging that Cooper had erred in this and accordingly been removed from Bolivia, he denied that Cooper's statements had constituted a request.
in response to asylum provided to former Bolivian Defense Minister Carlos Sanchez Berzain by the United States.
In 2003, 60 people were killed when anti-government protests were quashed by a military action Berzain directed. Evo Morales spoke out to support of the protesters in their cause. After briefly returning to Washington, Goldberg met with Bolivian Defense Minister Walker San Miguel in early July, telling reporters after, "We want to resolve the problems that exist, and in order to do that, we have to admit there are problems."
Governor Rubén Costas
. Costas, founder of Autonomy for Bolivia
, has pressed for democracy and autonomy
for Bolivia's regions. Adam Isacson of the Center for International Policy
concurs that the meeting between Goldberg and Costas was a factor in the crisis, since he believes it may have been interpreted by the Bolivians as a show of approval for anti-government demonstrations in Santa Cruz. Morales has accused Goldberg of plotting against Bolivia's government and the unity of the country. Prior to Goldberg only seven U.S. chiefs of missions have been ordered expelled from countries where they were serving.
In an interview with Newsweek magazine, Goldberg indicated a belief that several factors had come into play in his expulsion, including the influence of Venezuela
, and that "[i]t was part of the general policy of the Bolivian government for Morales to attack the United States." Immediately prior to leaving Bolivia, Goldberg had said that Morales' decision would have "serious consequences of several sorts which apparently have not been correctly evaluated". The US State Department issued an official statement saying that Bolivia had committed a grave error and that the allegations against Goldberg were baseless. The statement also indicated that:
On September 17, 2008 President Bush announced he was putting Bolivia on the counter-narcotics blacklist
because of its refusal to participate in the War on Drugs
. State Department spokesman David Johnson said, "Bolivia remains a major narcotics-producing country and its official policies and actions have caused a significant deterioration in its cooperation with the United States." Bolivian President Morales, pointing to the United States' own drug production record, asserted that the move was political.
On October 16, 2008, while signing the Andean Trade Preference Act Extension, President Bush announced that "Bolivia has failed to cooperate with the United States on important efforts to fight drug trafficking. So, sadly, I have proposed to suspend Bolivia's trade preferences until it fulfills its obligations." An October 6, 2008 editorial in the New York Times had argued that such a move would be "self-defeating", as the larger goal of the administration is to diminish the drug trade by impacting the lives of farmers, suggesting that "the justified anger at the expulsion of Mr. Goldberg" might undermine the administration's reasoning on the matter. On October 18, 2008, The Washington Post reported that this suspension, which could result in the unemployment of 20,000 to 30,000 Bolivians, has been interpreted by Bolivia as "part of an escalating feud" representing what Juan Ramón Quintana, Bolivia's minister of the presidency, termed "the worst moment for the relations between the United States and the entire world."
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
and was expelled by the Bolivian government in 2008, the eighth chief of mission in US diplomatic history to be declared persona non grata
Persona non grata
Persona non grata , literally meaning "an unwelcome person", is a legal term used in diplomacy that indicates a proscription against a person entering the country...
. He was nominated on October 23, 2009 to the Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research
Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research
The Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research is the head of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research within the United States Department of State. Before 1986, the head of INR was the Director of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research...
and confirmed by the Senate on February 9, 2010.
Early life and education
Goldberg is a native of Boston, Massachusetts, with two sisters, Donna and Lisa. In her adulthood, Lisa Goldberg would become President of the Charles H. Revson Foundation in 2003 and wife of New York University's president, John Sexton, before dying in 2007 of a brain aneurysm. Goldberg is a graduate of The Rivers School and Boston UniversityBoston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
. Before joining the Foreign Service, Goldberg, who speaks fluent Spanish, worked as a liaison officer between the City of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
and consular community.
Department of State appointments
Goldberg is a career member of the U.S. Senior Foreign Service. Goldberg has served overseas as a consular and political officer at the U.S. Embassy in Bogota, Colombia, and political-economic officer in Pretoria, South Africa. From 1994 to 1996 Goldberg served as the State Department's Desk Officer for Bosnia and a Special Assistant to Ambassador Richard HolbrookeRichard Holbrooke
Richard Charles Albert Holbrooke was an American diplomat, magazine editor, author, professor, Peace Corps official, and investment banker....
. As Special Assistant to Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, Goldberg was a member of the American negotiating team in the lead-up to the Dayton Peace Conference and Chief of Staff for the American Delegation at Dayton. From 1996 to 1999 Goldberg served as Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of State. From 1998 to 2000 Goldberg served as Executive Assistant (1998–2000) to the Deputy Secretary of State. In 2001 Goldberg served as a senior member of the State Department team handling the transition from the Clinton to Bush Administrations. From January 2001 to June 2001 Goldberg served as acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs. From 2001 to 2004 Goldberg served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Santiago, Chile
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
.
Chief of Mission to Kosovo
From 2004 to 2006 Goldberg served as Chief of Mission in Pristina, Kosovo. When Kosovo's 120-seat parliament voted 72-3 to elect Ramush HaradinajRamush Haradinaj
Ramush Haradinaj is a former leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army and former prime minister of Kosovo. He leads the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo and is among former KLA officers charged of war crimes during the 1999 Kosovo War by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia...
to head the new government, Goldberg emphasized the importance of the government's success. Haradinaj's election had been considered controversial because Haradinaj had recently been questioned about war crimes and there were indications that a UN war-crimes tribunal might be preparing to indict him. Haradinaj was subsequently charged with war crimes during the Kosovo War by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) at The Hague but was acquitted of all charges on April 3, 2008.
In April, 2005 Richard Holbrooke wrote in an op-ed piece in the Washington Post that Goldberg had warned that the situation in Kosovo was volatile and that Secretary of State Rice had sent Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns to Europe to advise our allies of the instability and the likelihood of increased violence in Kosovo unless steps were taken to speedily resolve Kosovo's final status. On February 1, 2006 Goldberg talked to Radio Free Europe about his work as Chief of Mission and whether the question of Kosovo's status could be resolved within the year. Goldberg said the process was "well under way".
Ambassador to Bolivia
Bolivia accuses United States of funding opposition
In August 2007, the United States was accused by Government Minister Juan Ramon Quintana of funding opposition to Bolivian President Evo Morales by providing opposition leaders and critical think-tanks with millions of dollars. According to Quintana, the US Government Aid agency, USAID, had implied by reference in documents in Bolivia's possession that funding was to help restore democracy to Bolivia. Morales indirectly threatened retaliation against the ambassador for interference with Bolivia's government. Tom Casey, a spokesman for the State Department, denied these allegations.Goldberg prohibited from entering Presidential Palace
In September 2007, Bolivian Morales complained that members of his delegation to the United Nations had found it difficult to acquire visas to enter the United States, suggesting that the UN headquarters should be moved. He also complained of long delays in the airport.In October, 2007 Bolivian newspaper La Razón reported that after Morales' remarks about the United Nations, Morales prohibited Goldberg from entering the Presidential Palace after Goldberg remarked that he wouldn't be surprised if Morales also requested the move of Disney World. Morales said that Goldberg had been making fun of Morales and of the Bolivian people and demanded an apology. Goldberg reportedly sent a written apology, indicating that his statement regarding Disney World had been a joke made to relax tension between Bolivia and the United States.
Peace Corps "spying" incident in Bolivia
In February 2008, ABC NewsABC News
ABC News is the news gathering and broadcasting division of American broadcast television network ABC, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company...
reported that thirty Peace Corps
Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an American volunteer program run by the United States Government, as well as a government agency of the same name. The mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance, helping people outside the United States to understand US culture, and helping...
volunteers had been asked "to basically spy" on Cubans
Cubans
Cubans or Cuban people are the inhabitants or citizens of Cuba. Cuba is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
and Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
ns in Bolivia by US Embassy Security Officer Vincent Cooper. Peace Corps Deputy Director for Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
Doreen Salazar was present at the meeting and asserts that not only did she protest to the embassy later, but that on the spot Peace Corps staff made clear that these instructions were not mandatory. She also indicated that she had never heard such instructions made before and that the embassy agreed it was inappropriate. In their statement, the U.S. Embassy in La Paz acknowledged that the volunteers had received "incorrect information", indicating that "As soon as this was brought to our attention, appropriate measures were taken to assure that these errors would not be repeated." They indicated that the briefing had been intended for embassy staff.
Peace Corps issued a press release reiterating in no uncertain terms that the corps is not involved in any intelligence
Intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in different ways, including the abilities for abstract thought, understanding, communication, reasoning, learning, planning, emotional intelligence and problem solving....
gathering.
In February 2008 it was also alleged by a visiting American Fulbright scholar that US Embassy Security Officer Vincent Cooper, in a routine safety briefing, asked the student to report the names and locations of "any Venezuelans or Cubans in the field—doctors, field workers, etc." The student alleged this incident took place in November, 2007, four months after the initial complaint by the Peace Corps was lodged with the Embassy. This student's reports were the initial trigger for Cooper's recall to the United States "to be questioned."
On February 12, 2008, CNN reported that Bolivian President Evo Morales had declared Cooper "undesirable". According to CNN, Ambassador Goldberg indicated that the embassy had never "asked anyone to spy."
The United States Peace Corps issued a press release reiterating that no Peace Corps volunteers had participated in intelligence activities and that it remained Peace Corps policy that there was an absolute separation between "any official duties pertaining to U.S. foreign policy, including the reality or the appearance of involvement in intelligence related activities." The Press Release added that "Consistent with the policy of every administration since 1961, Director Ron Tschetter, himself a former Volunteer in India (1966-1968), has been very clear in re-affirming this long standing policy and, once again, stressing that Peace Corps Volunteers work on community service and nothing else."
In an interview with Newsweek magazine in September 2008, Goldberg said that the incident had been overblown. According to Goldberg, Cooper had incorporated into the security briefing warnings generally provided to "direct American employees" advising them to exercise caution when dealing with potentially exploitative individuals from third countries. While acknowledging that Cooper had erred in this and accordingly been removed from Bolivia, he denied that Cooper's statements had constituted a request.
Protest outside US Embassy
The International Herald Tribune reported on June 9, 2008 that some 20,000 Bolivians had been involved in a protest outside the U.S. embassy in La Paz where they had attacked police with dynamite and pepper sprayPepper spray
Pepper spray, also known as OC spray , OC gas, and capsicum spray, is a lachrymatory agent that is used in riot control, crowd control and personal self-defense, including defense against dogs and bears...
in response to asylum provided to former Bolivian Defense Minister Carlos Sanchez Berzain by the United States.
In 2003, 60 people were killed when anti-government protests were quashed by a military action Berzain directed. Evo Morales spoke out to support of the protesters in their cause. After briefly returning to Washington, Goldberg met with Bolivian Defense Minister Walker San Miguel in early July, telling reporters after, "We want to resolve the problems that exist, and in order to do that, we have to admit there are problems."
Ambassador Goldberg declared "persona non grata"
On September 10, 2008, the Bolivian Government expelled Ambassador Goldberg, after declaring him persona non grata. The Telegraph reported on September 12, 2008 that President Morales had been infuriated by a meeting between Goldberg and Santa CruzSanta Cruz Department
Santa Cruz, with an area of 370,621 km², is the largest of the nine constituent departments of Bolivia. In the 2001 census, it reported a population of 2,029,471. The capital is the city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra. The state is one of the wealthiest states in Bolivia with huge reserves of...
Governor Rubén Costas
Rubén Costas
Rubén Armando Costas Aguilera is the governor of Bolivia's Santa Cruz department for the Truth and Social Democracy party. Previously he served as prefect on behalf of the Autonomy for Bolivia party...
. Costas, founder of Autonomy for Bolivia
Autonomy for Bolivia
Autonomy for Bolivia is a political party based in Santa Cruz Department, Bolivia.The party was founded by Ruben Costas, so that he could stand for election to the prefect of Santa Cruz Department in the Bolivian general elections of 2005....
, has pressed for democracy and autonomy
Secession
Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.-Secession theory:...
for Bolivia's regions. Adam Isacson of the Center for International Policy
Center for International Policy
The Center for International Policy is a non-profit public policy research and advocacy think tank with offices in Washington, D.C. and New York City. It was founded in 1975 in response to the Vietnam War. The Center describes its mission as "promoting a U.S...
concurs that the meeting between Goldberg and Costas was a factor in the crisis, since he believes it may have been interpreted by the Bolivians as a show of approval for anti-government demonstrations in Santa Cruz. Morales has accused Goldberg of plotting against Bolivia's government and the unity of the country. Prior to Goldberg only seven U.S. chiefs of missions have been ordered expelled from countries where they were serving.
In an interview with Newsweek magazine, Goldberg indicated a belief that several factors had come into play in his expulsion, including the influence of Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, and that "[i]t was part of the general policy of the Bolivian government for Morales to attack the United States." Immediately prior to leaving Bolivia, Goldberg had said that Morales' decision would have "serious consequences of several sorts which apparently have not been correctly evaluated". The US State Department issued an official statement saying that Bolivia had committed a grave error and that the allegations against Goldberg were baseless. The statement also indicated that:
President Morales’ action is a grave error that has seriously damaged the bilateral relationship.... We regret that President Morales has chosen this course. It will prejudice the interests of both countries, undermine the ongoing fight against drug-trafficking, and will have serious regional implications.
Actions by the United States after Goldberg expulsion
On September 11, 2008 the United States ordered the Bolivian ambassador to the United States, Gustavo Guzman, to leave the country, announcing that "In response to the unwarranted action and in accordance with the Vienna Convention, we have officially informed the government of Bolivia of our decision to declare Ambassador Gustavo Guzman persona non grata.".On September 17, 2008 President Bush announced he was putting Bolivia on the counter-narcotics blacklist
Blacklist
A blacklist is a list or register of entities who, for one reason or another, are being denied a particular privilege, service, mobility, access or recognition. As a verb, to blacklist can mean to deny someone work in a particular field, or to ostracize a person from a certain social circle...
because of its refusal to participate in the War on Drugs
War on Drugs
The War on Drugs is a campaign of prohibition and foreign military aid and military intervention being undertaken by the United States government, with the assistance of participating countries, intended to both define and reduce the illegal drug trade...
. State Department spokesman David Johnson said, "Bolivia remains a major narcotics-producing country and its official policies and actions have caused a significant deterioration in its cooperation with the United States." Bolivian President Morales, pointing to the United States' own drug production record, asserted that the move was political.
On October 16, 2008, while signing the Andean Trade Preference Act Extension, President Bush announced that "Bolivia has failed to cooperate with the United States on important efforts to fight drug trafficking. So, sadly, I have proposed to suspend Bolivia's trade preferences until it fulfills its obligations." An October 6, 2008 editorial in the New York Times had argued that such a move would be "self-defeating", as the larger goal of the administration is to diminish the drug trade by impacting the lives of farmers, suggesting that "the justified anger at the expulsion of Mr. Goldberg" might undermine the administration's reasoning on the matter. On October 18, 2008, The Washington Post reported that this suspension, which could result in the unemployment of 20,000 to 30,000 Bolivians, has been interpreted by Bolivia as "part of an escalating feud" representing what Juan Ramón Quintana, Bolivia's minister of the presidency, termed "the worst moment for the relations between the United States and the entire world."