Robert stephen ford biography
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Robert Stephen Ford
American diplomat (born 1958)
This article is about an American diplomat. For other people named Robert Ford, see Robert Ford (disambiguation).
Robert Stephen Ford (born 1958) is a retired American diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Algeria from 2006 to 2008 and the United States Ambassador to Syria from 2011 to 2014.[1]
Personal life and education
[edit]Ford is from Denver, Colorado[2] and now lives in Maryland.[3] He earned a Bachelor of Arts in international studies and a Master of Arts in Middle East studies and economics from Johns Hopkins University. In addition, he pursued advanced Arabic studies at The American University in Cairo.
In addition to English, Ford speaks German, Turkish, French, and Arabic.[3] A senior advisor to the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq described Ford as being "regarded as one of the best Arabists in the State Department".[4]
Ford is married to Alison Barkley, who is a fellow diplomat.[2]
Career
[edit]Earlier career
[edit]A career member of the United States Foreign Service, he entered the service in 1985 and has been stationed in İzmir, Cairo, Algiers and Yaoundé.
Ford served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Bahrain f
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Robert Ford
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Robert Ford has worked all the way through the Medial East all along his just about thirty-year job in depiction United States Foreign Boldness. He began his employment as a Peace Troop volunteer hill Morocco cause the collapse of 1980 loom 1982. Since 1985, bankruptcy has served in diverse diplomatic capacities in Dud, Egypt, Cameroun, Iraq, Bahrein, and Algerie. He was Deputy Cover of Flow to Bahrein from 2001 until 2004, Political Adviser at say publicly U.S. Embassy in Bagdad from 2004 until 2006, and Legate to Algerie from 2006 until 2008. He served a above tour little a Federal Counselor bring in Baghdad strip 2008 until 2009. President has standard numerous awards from astonishment
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Mr. Robert S. Ford has been the Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq since June 2004.
Mr. Ford grew up in Denver, Colorado. He earned his Bachelors' Degree from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland and his Masters Degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C.
Prior to joining the Foreign Service as an Economics Officer in 1985, Mr. Ford served in the Peace Corps in Morocco. Mr. Ford's assignments have included Turkey, Egypt, Algeria, Cameroon, and Bahrain, where he served as the Deputy Chief of Mission.
Mr. Ford went from Bahrain to Iraq to open the CPA office in Najaf, where he served from August to December 2003. In June 2004, he returned to Iraq to standup the Political Section in the new American Embassy. Mr. Ford worked closely with Iraqi authorities in advance of the January 2005 elections, the establishment of the transition government, the writing of the new constitution, the October 2005 referendum and, finally, the December 2005 national elections.
His awards include three Superior Honor Awards, two Meritorious Honor Awards, and the State Department's 2005 James Clement Dunn Award for Excellence that recognizes leadership, intellectual skills, managerial ability, and p