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Mark S. Ward

Senior Advisor on Assistance to Syria, American Embassy in Turkey (United States)

Residency: May 6–10, 2013

Public Talk: "U.S. Foreign Assistance for the Arab Spring"

Residency Summary

Top diplomatic advisor, Mark S. Ward, delivered a public talk on “U.S. Foreign Assistance for the Arab Spring,” where he discussed how the revolutions in Tunisia, Libya and Egypt are changing America's relationship with the Middle East and North Africa. He also talked about the factors that influenced U.S. policy on foreign aid to three countries transitioning from totalitarian rule to an uncertain future.

Biography

Mark Ward is currently the senior advisor on assistance to Syria at the American Embassy in Turkey, the office that coordinates nonlethal U.S. Government funded assistance for the Syrian people and the opposition. He is a career minister in the Senior Foreign Service of the United States and has served in Pakistan, Egypt, Philippines and Russia. Other positions he has held include senior advisor to the head of UN Mission in Libya (2011 – 12); deputy assistant administrator for the Bureau for Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance (2010 – 11); acting director of the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance for USAID (2010 – 11); special advisor on development to the head of the UN Mission in Afghanistan (2008 – 10); and mission director for USAID in Pakistan (2002 – 03). In 2006, he was awarded the Service to America medal for international affairs for his work on tsunami reconstruction effort. Ward received his B.A. in political science and JD from UC Berkeley.

Photos

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Videos

Public Talk

Interview
"Do You Know What The U.S. Government Is Up To In Syria?"
October 4, 2013, NPR cites Mark Ward