James Eugene Goodby (born December 20, 1929) is an author and former

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

diplomat. Goodby was born in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts Bay ...

. He graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

with an

A.B. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

in 1951 and served as a

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

in the

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an a ...

during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

from 1952–53. He attended the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

(1951–52) and Harvard University (1953–54). Goodby served with the

United States Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

in 1951. After the war he became a

Foreign Service Officer A Foreign Service Officer (FSO) is a commissioned member of the United States Foreign Service. Foreign Service Officers formulate and implement the foreign policy of the United States. FSOs spend most of their careers overseas as members of U ...

and remained in the

Foreign Service Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtains diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to o ...

until his retirement in 1989. He was foreign affairs specialist with the

United States Atomic Energy Commission The United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by U.S. Congress to foster and control the peacetime development of atomic science and technology. President H ...

in 1954–59, foreign affairs officer in the Office of Special Assistant to the Secretary of State for Atomic Energy in 1960, Officer in Charge of Nuclear Test Ban Negotiations at the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency in 1961–63; member of the Policy Planning Council at the

Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other nati ...

in 1963–67; political officer at the United States Mission to the

European Communities The European Communities (EC) were three international organizations that were governed by the same set of institutions. These were the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or Euratom), and the ...

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

in 1967–69; Officer in Charge of Defense Policy Affairs at the

Bureau of European Affairs In the United States Government, the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs (EUR) is part of the United States Department of State, charged with implementing U.S. foreign policy and promoting U.S. interests in Europe and Eurasia (which it defin ...

of the Department of State, in 1969–71; Counselor for Political Affairs at the United States Mission to the

North Atlantic Treaty Organization 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 ...

in Brussels in 1971–74; Deputy Director of the Bureau of Politico-Military Affairs in 1974–77 (negotiating with

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 ...

alliance partners as part of the

Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe The Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) was a key element of the détente process during the Cold War. Although it did not have the force of a treaty, it recognized the boundaries of postwar Europe and established a mechanism f ...

to create the

Helsinki Accords The Helsinki Final Act, also known as Helsinki Accords or Helsinki Declaration was the document signed at the closing meeting of the third phase of the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) held in Helsinki, Finland, between ...

); and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs in 1977–80. Goodby served as

United States Ambassador to Finland United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

(April 11, 1980 – August 18, 1981), and was vice chairman of the U.S. delegation to the

Strategic Arms Reduction Talks START I (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) was a bilateral treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union on the reduction and the limitation of strategic offensive arms. The treaty was signed on 31 July 1991 and entered into force on 5 De ...

(START). Goodby was appointed Ambassador to Greece, but his nomination not acted upon by the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

and he later declined a

recess appointment In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the president of a federal official when the U.S. Senate is in recess. Under the U.S. Constitution's Appointments Clause, the President is empowered to nominate, and with the advi ...

. In 1993, Goodby returned from retirement to become the Chief U.S. Negotiator for the

Safe and Secure Dismantlement of Nuclear Weapons A safe (also called a strongbox or coffer) is a secure lockable box used for securing valuable objects against theft or fire. A safe is usually a hollow cuboid or cylinder, with one face being removable or hinged to form a door. The body and d ...

. During this time he negotiated agreements with several

former Soviet republics The post-Soviet states, also known as the former Soviet Union (FSU), the former Soviet Republics and in Russia as the near abroad (russian: links=no, ближнее зарубежье, blizhneye zarubezhye), are the 15 sovereign states that wer ...

to dismantle nuclear weapons in those countries and to prevent nuclear weapons proliferation. He later won the 1st Annual

Heinz Award The Heinz Awards are individual achievement honors given annually by the Heinz Family Foundation. The Heinz Awards each year recognize outstanding individuals for their innovative contributions in three areas: the Arts, the Economy and the Enviro ...

in Public Policy for this work in 1995. Goodby is currently Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies at the

Brookings Institution The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington, D.C., the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in ec ...

, a member of the Bipartisan Security Group, and

Annenberg Annenberg may refer to: * Annenberg (surname) * The Annenberg Foundation, formerly Annenberg/CPB, known for funding educational television and the Annenberg Channel * The USC Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern Calif ...

Distinguished Visiting Fellow at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

Hoover Institution The Hoover Institution (officially The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace; abbreviated as Hoover) is an American public policy think tank and research institution that promotes personal and economic liberty, free enterprise, and ...

Publications (partial list)

* ''Europe Undivided: The New Logic of Peace in U.S.-Russian Relations'', United States Institute of Peace Press, 1998 * ''The Nuclear Turning Point: A Blueprint for Deep Cuts and De-Alerting of Nuclear Weapons'' (contributor), Brookings Institution Press, 1999. * ''The Gravest Danger: Nuclear Weapons'', with Sidney D. Drell, Hoover Institution Press, 2003. * ''A Strategy for Stable Peace: Toward a Euroatlantic Security Community'', with Petrus Buwalda and Dmitri Trenin, Brookings, 2003. * ''At the Borderline of Armageddon: How American Presidents Managed the Atom Bomb'', Rowman & Littlefield, 2006. * ''The War that Must Never be Fought'', with George P. Shultz, Hoover Press, 2015. * ''Approaching the Nuclear Tipping Point: Cooperative Security in an Era of Global Change'', Rowman & Littlefield, 2017. * ''Practical Lessons from US Foreign Policy: The Itinerant Years'', with Kenneth Weisbrode, Palgrave Macmillan, 2020.

References

External links

Profile
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United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

, Office of the Historian
Nomination of James Eugene Goodby for the Rank of Ambassador While Serving at the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks March 31, 1982
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Goodby, James 1929 births Ambassadors of the United States to Finland United States Air Force personnel of the Korean War Carnegie Mellon University faculty Harvard University alumni Living people Writers from Providence, Rhode Island University of Michigan alumni United States Foreign Service personnel Brookings Institution people