Daniel William Christman (born May 5, 1943) is a retired

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

, former Superintendent of the United States Military Academy (1996–2001), and the current Senior Vice President for International Affairs,

U.S. Chamber of Commerce The United States Chamber of Commerce (USCC) is the largest lobbying group in the United States, representing over three million businesses and organizations. The group was founded in April 1912 out of local chambers of commerce at the urgin ...

. A 1965 graduate of West Point, he went on to earn multiple post-graduate degrees and hold numerous commands during his army career. Christman served in highly visible and strategically important positions and four times was awarded the

Defense Distinguished Service Medal The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members for exceptionally distinguished performance of duty contributing to the ...

, the nation's highest peacetime service award.

Early life and education

Born in

Youngstown, Ohio Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio, and the largest city and county seat of Mahoning County. At the 2020 census, Youngstown had a city population of 60,068. It is a principal city of the Youngstown–Warren metropolitan area, whi ...

and raised in

Hudson, Ohio Hudson is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,110 at the 2020 census. It is a suburban community in the Akron metropolitan statistical area and the larger Cleveland–Akron–Canton Combined Statistical Area, t ...

, Christman attended

Western Reserve Academy , motto_translation = Light and Truth , address = 115 College Street , city = Hudson , state = Ohio , zipcode = 44236-2999 , country = United ...

for high school and graduated first in his class from

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

in 1965. He holds master's degrees in civil engineering and public affairs from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

(June 1969) and graduated with honors from

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Chartered in 1821 by the United States Congress, GWU is the largest Higher educat ...

law school in 1986. He is also a graduate of the

Army Command and General Staff College The United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC or, obsolete, USACGSC) at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, is a graduate school for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military ...

in June 1974 and the National War College in June 1983. He is a member of the

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

and

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, bar associations and is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is a graduate of the army

Ranger School The United States Army Ranger School is a 62-day small unit tactics and leadership course that develops functional skills directly related to units whose mission is to engage the enemy in close combat and direct fire battles. Ranger training wa ...

in November 1965 and the

Airborne School The United States Army Airborne School – widely known as Jump School – conducts the basic paratrooper (military parachutist) training for the United States Armed Forces. It is operated by the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 507th Infantry, Uni ...

Military command positions

Christman's military career included company commands with the 2nd Engineer Battalion, Changpo-Ri, Korea (1966), and the 326th Engineer Battalion, Hue, Vietnam (1969–1970). His battalion command was with the 54th Engineer Battalion in Wildflecken, Germany (1980–1982). He commanded the Savannah District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later t ...

, (1984–1986). He then was the Commanding General, U.S. Army Engineer Center and

Fort Leonard Wood Fort Leonard Wood is a U.S. Army training installation located in the Missouri Ozarks. The main gate is located on the southern boundary of The City of St. Robert. The post was created in December 1940 and named in honor of General Leonard W ...

and Commandant, U.S. Army Engineer School, Fort Leonard Wood, Mo., (1991–1993). Christman served as the 19th U.S. Representative to the

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 ...

Military Committee, Brussels, Belgium (1993–1994) before taking command at the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

as the 55th Superintendent (1996–2001).

Major military staff positions

Christman's major staff assignments involved service as Staff Assistant with National Security Council, the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

(1975–1976). He was a Staff Officer in the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Department of the Army, Washington, D.C., (1976–1978). In both of these assignments, Christman was responsible for advising the Army Chief of Staff and senior staff on the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT). He was also called upon to testify before the House Select Committee on intelligence regarding

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

compliance with earlier arms control agreements. Christman also served for 21 months as Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General John M. Shalikashvili. In this capacity, he supported Secretary of State

Warren Christopher Warren Minor Christopher (October 27, 1925March 18, 2011) was an American lawyer, diplomat and politician. During Bill Clinton's first term as president, he served as the 63rd United States Secretary of State. Born in Scranton, North Dakota, ...

as a member of the Middle East Peace Negotiating Team and in arms control negotiations with the

Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

. Additionally, Christman served for a year and a half as Army adviser to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral William J. Crowe, and then as Assistant to the Attorney General of the United States for National Security Affairs. Christman also served as Director of Strategy, Plans and Policy in Department of Army Headquarters, Washington, D.C. His duties in this assignment focused on negotiations relating to the Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) arms control talks between

and the

Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist repub ...

. In the course of supporting these negotiations on behalf of the Chief of Staff of the Army and the Chairman, JCS, Christman briefed former

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Bush and traveled to Europe to brief allied heads of state and the NATO Secretary General.

Decorations

Defense Distinguished Service Medal ribbon

with three oak leaf clusters * Distinguished Service Medal ribbon

Army Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster * US Defense Superior Service Medal ribbon

Defense Superior Service Medal * Legion of Merit ribbon

Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster * Bronze Star ribbon

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

with oak leaf cluster * Air Medal ribbon

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

with two oak leaf clusters

Post military

Christman has appeared as a military analyst for CNN International during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He is a frequent contributor to CNN, and has also appeared on ABC, Fox, MSNBC, CNBC, and C-SPAN to discuss defense and national security issues. Christman has written and lectured extensively on leadership and national defense, including the ongoing war against international terrorism. Christman was appointed to the board of directors of the Ultralife Corporation of

Newark, New York Newark is a village in Wayne County, New York, United States, south east of Rochester and west of Syracuse. The population was 9,017 at the 2020 census. The Village of Newark is in the south part of the Town of Arcadia and is in the south of ...

, in August 2001. He is currently Senior Vice President International Affairs for the

, a position he has held since June 2003, and was previously the Executive Director of the Kimsey Foundation in Washington, D.C. He also currently serves as a director of United Services Automobile Association, an insurance mutual corporation and Entegris], Inc., a semi-conductor equipment manufacturer. He currently serves on the American Security Project's board of directors.

References

External links

Portrait of General Christman
by Margaret Holland Sargent * {{DEFAULTSORT:Christman, Daniel W. 1943 births Living people People from Youngstown, Ohio People from Hudson, Ohio Western Reserve Academy alumni United States Military Academy alumni United States Army Rangers Princeton University School of Engineering and Applied Science alumni Princeton School of Public and International Affairs alumni United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Air Medal United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni George Washington University Law School alumni National War College alumni Recipients of the Legion of Merit United States Army generals Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Superintendents of the United States Military Academy Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal United States Chamber of Commerce people