Kurt Michael Campbell (born August 27, 1957) is an American diplomat and businessman who served as the

United States deputy secretary of state The deputy secretary of state of the United States is the principal deputy to the United States Secretary of State, secretary of state. If the secretary of state resigns or dies, the deputy secretary of state becomes acting secretary of state unti ...

from 2024 to 2025. He previously served as deputy assistant advisor to President Biden and National Security Council coordinator for the Indo-Pacific from 2021 to 2024. In this capacity, Campbell had been referred to as the

Biden administration Joe Biden's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 46th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Joe Biden, his inauguration on January 20, 2021, and ended on January 20, 2025. Biden, a member of the Democr ...

's "Asia coordinator" or "Asia czar"—chief architect of

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

's Asia strategy. He formerly served as

assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs Assistant may refer to: * Assistant (by Speaktoit), a virtual assistant app for smartphones * Assistant (software), a software tool to assist in computer configuration * Google Assistant, a virtual assistant by Google * The Assistant (TV series), ...

in the

Obama administration Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...

. He was the chairman and CEO of The Asia Group, which he founded in February 2013. On January 20, 2021, he was appointed as the NSC Coordinator for the Indo-Pacific by Joe Biden.

Education

Kurt Michael Campbell was born on August 27, 1957. He received a BA from the

University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...

, a certificate in music and political philosophy from the University of Yerevan in

Soviet Armenia The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic (ArSSR), also known as Soviet Armenia, or simply Armenia, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union, located in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Soviet Armenia ...

, and a doctorate in

international relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

from

Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The l ...

, on a

Marshall Scholarship The Marshall Scholarship is a postgraduate scholarship for "intellectually distinguished young Americans ndtheir country's future leaders" to study at any university in the United Kingdom. It is considered among the most prestigious scholarsh ...

Career

Campbell served in several capacities in government, including as

deputy assistant secretary of defense Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spai ...

for Asia and the Pacific, director on the

National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a n ...

Staff, deputy special counselor to the president for the

North American Free Trade Agreement The North American Free Trade Agreement (, TLCAN; , ALÉNA), referred to colloquially in the Anglosphere as NAFTA, ( ) was an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States that created a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The ...

(NAFTA), and as a

White House Fellow The White House Fellows program is a non-partisan fellowship established via Executive Order 11183 by President Lyndon B. Johnson in October 1964. The fellowship is one of the United States' most prestigious programs for leadership and public se ...

at the

United States Department of the Treasury The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the Treasury, national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States. It is one of 15 current United States federal executive departments, U.S. government departments. ...

. Campbell served as an officer in the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest displacement, at 4.5 million tons in 2021. It has the world's largest aircraft ...

on the

Joint Chiefs of Staff The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, which advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and ...

and in the

Chief of Naval Operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the highest-ranking officer of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an Admiral (United States), admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the United States Secretary ...

Special Intelligence Unit. He was also associate professor of public policy and international relations at the

John F. Kennedy School of Government The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...

and assistant director of the Center for Science and International Affairs at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. In 2000, Campbell was hired at the

Center for Strategic and International Studies The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is an American think tank based in Washington, D.C. From its founding in 1962 until 1987, it was an affiliate of Georgetown University, initially named the Center for Strategic and Inte ...

as one of its senior vice-presidents, as director of its International Security Program, and as its Henry A. Kissinger Chair in National Security Policy. Campbell went on to become the CEO and co-founder of the

Center for a New American Security The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) is a think tank in Washington, D.C., specializing in United States national security issues, including terrorism, irregular warfare, the future of the U.S. military, the emergence of Asia as a global p ...

Obama administration

On June 26, 2009, Campbell was confirmed by the

. His last day in office was February 8, 2013.

Outside of government

Campbell also served as director of the

Aspen Strategy Group The Aspen Strategy Group (ASG) is a policy program of the Aspen Institute, based in Washington D.C. The ASG convenes decision-makers and thought leaders in nonpartisan public and private forums to discuss the most pressing challenges in U.S. n ...

and the chairman of the editorial board of the ''Washington Quarterly.'' He was the founder and principal of StratAsia, a consulting firm focused on small-to-medium businesses in Asia, along as in 2013 co-founder and chair of The Asia Group, a strategic advisory firm also focused on the Asia-Pacific region. Campbell was a member of the

Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank focused on Foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Founded in 1921, it is an independent and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organi ...

, the Wasatch Group, and the

International Institute for Strategic Studies The International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) is an international research institute or think tank focusing on defence and security issues. Since 1997, its headquarters have been at Arundel House in London. It has offices on four co ...

. In 2018–2019, Campbell was Kissinger Fellow at the McCain Institute.

Biden administration

Campbell was appointed as the National Security coordinator for the Indo-Pacific on January 20, 2021, the first day of President

's administration. In that role, he traveled to Japan several times and the Solomon Islands. His staff included Dr. Rush Doshi and Sarah Donilon. He has been referred to as the Biden administration's "Asia coordinator" or "Asia czar." On November 1, 2023, Campbell was nominated by President Biden to become the

, and his nomination was sent to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

the same day. His nomination was confirmed by a 92–5 vote on February 6, 2024. He was sworn in on February 12, 2024. The Biden administration does not plan to nominate a replacement for Campbell as the Indo-Pacific coordinator. A White House spokesperson shared that the role had been created specifically for Campbell and was not a permanent post.

Post-Biden administration

Campbell rejoined The Asia Group as chairman and co-founder in February 2025. He was appointed a distinguished fellow in diplomacy at Georgetown University's

Walsh School of Foreign Service The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the school of international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It grants degrees at both Undergraduate education, undergraduate and Postgraduate education, graduate lev ...

in March 2025.

Publications

As author

*The China Reckoning: How Beijing Defied American Expectations, ''

Foreign Affairs ''Foreign Affairs'' is an American magazine of international relations and foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy published by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit organization, nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership or ...

'', April 2018 (co-authored with Ely Ratner) *''The Pivot: The Future of American Statecraft in Asia'', Kurt M. Campbell, (NYC: Twelve, 2016) *''Difficult Transitions: Foreign Policy Troubles at the Outset of Presidential Power'', Kurt M. Campbell and James Steinberg, (Washington, D.C.: Brookings, 2008) *''Hard Power: The New Politics of National Security'', Kurt M. Campbell and Michael E. O'Hanlon, (Washington, D.C.: Basic Books, 2006) *''To Prevail: An American Strategy for the Campaign against Terrorism'', Kurt M. Campbell and

Michèle Flournoy Michèle Angélique Flournoy (; born December 14, 1960) is an American defense policy advisor who served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy under President Bill Clinton and Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, under secretar ...

, Principal Authors,

(Washington, D.C.: CSIS Press, 2001)

As editor

* Mentioned i
''Is this what the World is Coming to?'' (Nature.com)
*''The Nuclear Tipping Point'', Kurt M. Campbell, Robert J. Einhorn, Mitchell Reiss, eds., (Washington, D.C.: Brookings, 2004)

As opinionist

* At the outset of his influence on the Biden administration, he saw the D10 club of countries as "most urgent for questions of trade, technology, supply chains, and standards", and militarily sought to expand "the so-called Quad".

Honors and awards

Campbell received the

Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, ...

Medals for Distinguished Public Service and for Outstanding Public Service. Campbell co-chaired the executive committee of the 9-11 Pentagon Memorial Fund. On 25 November 2013, Campbell was appointed an Honorary Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for "service to strengthening bilateral relations between Australia and the United States of America"''.'' In the

2014 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2014 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

, Campbell was appointed an honorary

Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ...

for services to New Zealand-United States relations. On 15 October 2013, Campbell was appointed Order of Brilliant Star with Special Grand Cordon for services to

Taiwan–United States relations After the United States established diplomatic relations with the China, People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1979 and recognized Beijing as the only legal government of China, Taiwan–United States relations became unofficial and informal fo ...

References

External links

*
State Department biographyKurt Campbell's bio on CNAS websiteBelfer Center Alums Launch Center for New American Strategy
ic* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, Kurt M. 1957 births Living people 21st-century American diplomats 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford American book editors American foreign policy writers American international relations scholars Assistant secretaries of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs Biden administration personnel Center for a New American Security Diplomats from California Honorary companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit Honorary officers of the Order of Australia Harvard Kennedy School faculty Lixil Group people Marshall Scholars Obama administration personnel United States–Asian relations United States deputy secretaries of state University of California, San Diego alumni Writers from Fresno, California Yerevan State University alumni