Derek Chollet is an American foreign policy advisor and author currently serving as the
Counselor of the United States Department of State
The Counselor of the United States Department of State is a position within the United States Department of State that serves the Secretary of State as a special advisor and consultant on major problems of foreign policy and who provides guidanc ...
. Previously, Chollet was the Executive Vice President for security and defense policy at the
German Marshall Fund of the United States
The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) is a nonpartisan American public policy think tank that seeks to promote cooperation and understanding between North America and the European Union.
Founded in 1972 through a gift from the We ...
. From 2012 to 2015, Chollet was the
Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs
In the United States, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs or ASD (ISA) is the principal advisor to the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (USD (P)) and the United States Secretary of Defense on internationa ...
, where he managed U.S. defense policy involving Europe,
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
, the Middle East, Africa, and the Western Hemisphere for Secretaries
Leon Panetta
Leon Edward Panetta (born June 28, 1938) is an American Democratic Party politician who has served in several different public office positions, including Secretary of Defense, CIA Director, White House Chief of Staff, Director of the Office of ...
and
Chuck Hagel
Charles Timothy Hagel ( born October 4, 1946)
Early life and education
Chollet was born in
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
and raised in
Lincoln, Nebraska
Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United Sta ...
. He graduated from
Lincoln Southeast High School
Lincoln Southeast High School is a public government education school located in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. It is part of the Lincoln Public Schools school district.
Lincoln Southeast High School has the highest accreditation from th ...
in 1989. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from
Cornell University
Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...
in 1993. In 1992, he was the recipient of the
Harry S. Truman Scholarship
The Harry S. Truman Scholarship is the premier graduate fellowship in the United States for public service leadership. It is a federally funded scholarship granted to U.S. undergraduate students for demonstrated leadership potential, academic ...
. From 1995 to 1999, he studied towards a PhD in political science at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, but left before completion.
Career
Chollet started in Washington in 1993, when he was the research assistant to former Secretary of State James A. Baker III helping him with his memoir, ''The Politics of Diplomacy''. In 1996, he was asked by the State Department to write a comprehensive history of the
Dayton Peace Accords
The General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as the Dayton Agreement or the Dayton Accords (Croatian language, Croatian: ''Daytonski sporazum'', Serbian language, Serbian and Bosnian language, Bosnian: ''Dejto ...
, which was declassified in 2003. In 1999 he joined the
Clinton Administration
Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following a decisive election victory over Re ...
, where he served as chief speechwriter for UN Ambassador
Richard Holbrooke
Richard Charles Albert Holbrooke (April 24, 1941 – December 13, 2010) was an American diplomat and author. He was the only person to have held the position of Assistant Secretary of State for two different regions of the world (Asia from 1977 ...
and as special advisor to Deputy Secretary of State
Strobe Talbott
Nelson Strobridge Talbott III (born April 25, 1946) is an American foreign policy analyst focused on Russia. He was associated with ''Time'' magazine, and a diplomat who served as the Deputy Secretary of State from 1994 to 2001. He was president ...
. From 2002 to 2004, Chollet was foreign policy adviser to U.S. Senator
John Edwards
Johnny Reid Edwards (born June 10, 1953) is an American lawyer and former politician who served as a U.S. senator from North Carolina. He was the Democratic nominee for vice president in 2004 alongside John Kerry, losing to incumbents George ...
(D-NC), both on his legislative staff and during the 2004 Kerry-Edwards presidential campaign. From 2009 to 2011, he was the Principal Deputy Director of
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States senat ...
’s Policy Planning staff. From November 2008 to January 2009, he was a member of the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition Team. From 2011 to 2012, Chollet served in the White House Office as special assistant to the president and senior director for strategic planning on the United States National Security Council.
Chollet has been a fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), the Brookings Institution, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), and the American Academy in Berlin. He has been a visiting scholar and adjunct professor at George Washington University and an adjunct associate professor at Georgetown University.
In addition to assisting Baker with his memoirs from 1996 to 1999, Chollet assisted former U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher with the research and writing of his books ''In the Stream of History and Chances of a Lifetime''; Richard Holbrooke with his book ''To End a War''. In 2001 he assisted Strobe Talbott with his book ''The Russia Hand''. Chollet is the author of ''The Long Game: How Obama Defied Washington and Redefined America's Role in the World'' (Public Affairs, 2016). He is a contributing editor to
Foreign Policy
A State (polity), state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterall ...
, where he co-edits "Shadow Government," and is a regular contributor to
Defense One
''Government Executive'' is an American media publication based in Washington, D.C., that covers daily government business for civilians, federal bureaucrats, and military officials. ''Government Executive'' is part of GovExec, which is owned by ...
. He is also an advisor to Beacon Global Strategies and an Adjunct Senior Research Scholar at the
Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies
The Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies (SIWPS) is a research center that is part of Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs in New York. It was founded in 1951 by President of Columbia Dwight D. Eisenho ...
.
In November 2020, Chollet was named a volunteer member of the
Joe Biden presidential transition
The presidential transition of Joe Biden began on November 7, 2020 and ended on January 20, 2021. Unlike previous presidential transitions, which normally take place during the roughly 10-week period between the election in the first week o ...
Counselor of the United States Department of State
The Counselor of the United States Department of State is a position within the United States Department of State that serves the Secretary of State as a special advisor and consultant on major problems of foreign policy and who provides guidanc ...
Superior Honor Award
The Superior Honor Award is an award of the United States Department of State. Similar versions of the same award exist for the former U.S. Information Agency, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, and USAID. It is presented to groups or individ ...
, the Latvia Minister of Defense Medal of Honorary Recognition, and the Lithuania Minister of Defense Medal of Merit.
Publications
Chollet is the author, co-author or co-editor of six books on American foreign policy. His commentaries and reviews on U.S. foreign policy and politics have appeared in many other books and publications.
*''The Middle Way: How Three Presidents Shaped America's Role in the World'' (Oxford University Press, 2021)
*''The Long Game: How Obama Defied Washington and Redefined America's Role in the World'' (Public Affairs, 2016)
*''The Road to the Dayton Accords: A Study of American Statecraft'' (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005)
*''America Between the Wars: From 11/9 to 9/11'', co-authored with
James Goldgeier
James M. Goldgeier is a professor of international relations at the School of International Service at American University in Washington, D.C., where he served as dean from 2011 to 2017. He became dean in August 2011. Previously he was employed ...
(Public Affairs, 2008)
*''The Unquiet American: Richard Holbrooke in the World'', co-edited with Samantha Power (Public Affairs, 2011).