James Bishop (diplomat)

James Keough Bishop Jr. (born July 21, 1938) is an American Foreign Service Officer, who served as U.S. Ambassador to Niger (1979–81), Liberia (1987-90), and Somalia (1990–91).

James Bishop
Bishop (right) with Ronald Reagan, 1987
Born (1938-07-21) July 21, 1938
New Rochelle, New York
NationalityAmerican
EducationCollege of the Holy Cross (BS)
Johns Hopkins University (MIIP)
OccupationDiplomat
Years active1960-1993[1]: 4, 117 
Known forU.S. Ambassador to Niger (1979-81), Liberia (1987-90), and Somalia (1990-91)

Bishop's last ambassadorial posting to Somalia ended in a rescue by the U.S. military in Operation Eastern Exit, when the embassy came under threat as a result of military action in the Somali Civil War.

Biography

Early life and education

Bishop was born July 21, 1938, in New Rochelle, New York[2] to James Keough Bishop Sr. and Dorothy (née O'Keefe).[3] He graduated from the College of the Holy Cross (B.S., 1960) and Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies (M.I.I.P., 1981).[2][4]

Diplomatic career

After graduating from college in 1960, Bishop entered the Foreign Service in 1960, where he held the following diplomatic positions:

  • press officer at the Department of State, 1961–63
  • vice consul in Auckland, New Zealand, 1963–66
  • consul in Beirut, Lebanon, 1966
  • economic officer in Beirut, Lebanon, 1966–68
  • economic officer in Yaoundé, Cameroon, 1968–70
  • desk officer for Chad, Gabon, Mauritius and Madagascar, 1970–72
  • desk officer for Ghana and Togo, 1972–74
  • Deputy Director for West Africa at the Department of State, 1974–76
  • Director of North African Affairs at the Bureau of Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs at the Department of State, 1977–79
  • Ambassador to the Republic of Niger, 1979–81
  • Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs at the Department of State, 1981–87
  • Ambassador to the Republic of Liberia, 1987-90[4]
  • Ambassador to the Somali Democratic Republic, 1990-91[5]
  • Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs, 1991-93[1][6]

Bishop retired from the Foreign Service in 1993.[1]

Personal life

Bishop and his wife mechanical engineer Kathleen Marie Kirby (February 14, 1947 – September 29, 2011)[7] have six children and were married from 1977 until Kathleen death.[3][4] Bishop and his first wife, attorney Ann Bishop Richardson(December 15, 1940 – April 17, 2012), were married from 1970 to 1976 and have three children and two grandchildren.[8] He is Roman Catholic.[1]

References
  1. Kennedy, Charles (1998). "Ambassador James K. Bishop, Jr" (PDF). The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
  2. Reagan, Ronald. "Nomination of James Keough Bishop To Be United States Ambassador to Liberia". Ronald Reagan Presidential Museum & Library. Archived from the original on 2015-09-10. Retrieved 2016-01-05.
  3. James Keough Bishop, Obituary, New York Times, April 9, 2006
  4. Nomination of James Keough Bishop To Be United States Ambassador to Somalia, April 19, 1990, White House press release
  5. James Keough Bishop (1938–), U.S. Dept. of State
  6. U.S. MEMO REVEALS DISPUTE ON BOSNIA, New York Times, June 25, 1993
  7. "Kathleen K. Bishop". Washington Post. October 14, 2011. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
  8. "ANN B. RICHARDSON Obituary (2012) the Washington Post". Legacy.com.
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