James Francis Moriarty | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Chairman of theAmerican Institute in Taiwan | |
| In office October 2016 – March 2023 | |
| President | Barack Obama Donald Trump Joe Biden |
| Preceded by | Raymond Burghardt |
| Succeeded by | Laura Rosenberger |
| United States Ambassador toBangladesh | |
| In office March 26, 2008 – June 17, 2011 | |
| President | George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Patricia A. Butenis |
| Succeeded by | Dan Mozena |
| United States Ambassador toNepal | |
| In office July 16, 2004 – May 22, 2007 | |
| President | George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Michael E. Malinowski |
| Succeeded by | Nancy J. Powell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1953 (age 71–72) |
| Spouse | Lauren Moriarty |
| Alma mater | Dartmouth College |
| Profession | Career diplomat |
James Francis Moriarty[1] (born 1953) is a United Statesdiplomat and careerforeign service officer with the rank of Minister-Counselor. He was theU.S. Ambassador to Nepal (2004–2007) and theU.S. Ambassador to Bangladesh (2008–2011). From 2016 to 2023, he was Chairman of theAmerican Institute in Taiwan.
Moriarty was born inWare, Massachusetts in 1953 to William E. Moriarty, a World War II army veteran and executive of the U.S. Postal Service.[2][3][4] James had two brothers, a sister, and a foster brother.[4] Like his father, he graduated fromWare High School.[4][5] He earned his Bachelor of Arts in history, summa cum laude, fromDartmouth College.[6]
Moriarty joined the Foreign Service in 1975. His first tour was as a consular officer in the U.S. Embassy in Rabat,Morocco. He subsequently served as a political/economic officer at the Embassy in Mbabane,Swaziland and then as an economic officer in the U.S. State Department's Office of Southern African Affairs.[2] He married Lauren Peters, also a foreign service officer, on July 5, 1982.[5]
AfterUrdu language training, he served as a political officer in Islamabad,Pakistan.[2] On June 5, 1987, during his posting there, his father died in Ware.[4]
Following two years of Chinese language training, Moriarty served as Deputy Chief of the political section at theU.S. Embassy in Beijing. From 1991 to 1993, he served as deputy director in the State Department's Office of UN Political Affairs.[2] In that capacity, he coordinated U.S. policy onUN Security Council issues. He received theAmerican Foreign Service Association’s Rivkin Award for his principled approach to thebreakup of Yugoslavia.[6] He was Diplomat-in-Resident at theEast–West Center inHonolulu, Hawaii in 1993–94.[6]
After taking a third year of Chinese language training,[2] Moriarty led the General Affairs (Political) Section at theAmerican Institute in Taiwan from 1994 to 1998. In 1998–2001, he served as Minister-Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing. He shaped the U.S. response toChinese missile tests in the Taiwan Strait, theU.S. bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, and theramming of a U.S. EP-3 plane off China's Hainan Island.[6]
Moriarty worked in the White House in 2001–2002 as National Security Council Director for China Affairs. He served in 2002–2004 as Special Assistant to thePresident of the United States of America and senior director at theNational Security Council. He was responsible for advising on and coordinating U.S. policy onEast Asia,South Asia, and thePacific region. In these jobs he helped lay the groundwork for U.S.-China policy for the 21st century.[6] After Taiwan passed theReferendum Act in late 2003, Moriarty flew to Taipei to deliver to PresidentChen Shui-bian a personal letter from PresidentGeorge W. Bush opposing any change to the status quo by the holding of a Taiwanese independence referendum.[7]
In 2004, President George W. Bush nominated Moriarty to beU.S. Ambassador to Nepal. Republican SenatorJon Kyl of Arizona placed a hold on Moriarty's confirmation, alleging that while at the National Security Council, he had delayed a sale of radar equipment to Taiwan. Moriarty had pushed through a procedural change for major decisions regarding Taiwan, but his supporters said it was not intended to delay approval. Senator Kyl lifted his hold after about a month,[8] and Moriarty's nomination was confirmed.
Mired in acivil war with Maoist insurgents since 1996, the popularity of the Nepalese monarchy was waning. On February 1, 2005, KingGyanendra dismissed parliament and declared a state of emergency. Ambassador Moriarty condemned Gyanendra's actions as undemocratic, and the US suspended lethal military assistance to his regime, but Nepalese politicians, journalists, and other civil-society advocates criticized Moriarty for taking a hard line against the Maoist insurgency while being too soft on the monarchy.[9] Moriarty actively lobbied against the Maoists in language that earned him a reputation as unusually outspoken for a diplomat.[10][11] He served as Ambassador to Nepal until 2007.[6]
From 2008 to 2011, Moriarty was theU.S. Ambassador to Bangladesh.[12]
Moriarty and his wife have a son and a daughter.[6]
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to Nepal 2004–2007 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to Bangladesh 2008–2011 | Succeeded by |
This article incorporatespublic domain material fromBiography: James F. Moriarty (2004).US State Department. This article incorporatespublic domain material fromBiography: James F. Moriarty (2008).US State Department.| International | |
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