Spring 2009 Conference

The Council of American Ambassadors held its Spring 2009 Conference on April 27 and April 28, 2009.

A Board of Directors meeting was held the afternoon of Monday, April 27. An evening reception followed for all members followed at the residence of Ambassaor Mary M. Ourisman.

The conference was held in The State Room of the George Washington University's Elliott School on the morning of Tuesday, April 28. Speakers included Ambassador Richard C. Holbrooke, Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan; Ambassador Ford M. Fraker, United States Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia 2007-2009; and Ambassador Richard T. McCormack, Vice Chairman of Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc., Ambassador to the Organization of American States 1985-1989, and Under Secretary of State for Economic and Agricultural Affairs, 1989-1991.

The Council's morning session at George Washington University was followed by a luncheon in the Benjamin Franklin Room of the Department of State. Ambassador William J. Burns, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, gave the keynote address.