Michael Hayden Armacost (April 15, 1937 – March 8, 2025) was an American diplomat and a fellow at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

's Freeman Spogli Institute, who was acting

United States Secretary of State The United States secretary of state (SecState) is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The secretary of state serves as the principal advisor to the ...

during the early days of the administration of President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...

, before Secretary

James Baker James Addison Baker III (born April 28, 1930) is an American attorney, diplomat and statesman. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 10th White House chief of staff and 67th United States secretary ...

was confirmed by the Senate. Armacost also served as United States Ambassador to Japan and the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

of the

Brookings Institution The Brookings Institution, often stylized as Brookings, is an American think tank that conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics (and tax policy), metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, global econo ...

from 1995 to 2002.

Life and career

Armacost was born in

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

on April 15, 1937. In the 1960s, Armacost taught international relations and foreign policy at

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalists ...

. Armacost was a White House Fellow in 1969–1970. Founded in 1964, the White House Fellowship is one of America’s most prestigious programs for leadership and public service. The Fellowship, awarded on a strictly non-partisan basis, offers exceptional young leaders first-hand experience working at the highest levels of federal government. In January 1977, Armacost was selected as a member of 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 ...

to handle

East Asian East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

and Chinese affairs under the

Carter administration Jimmy Carter's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 39th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Jimmy Carter, his inauguration on January 20, 1977, and ended on January 20, 1981. Carter, a Democratic Party ...

until July 1978, when he was replaced by Nicholas Platt. Years later, he was appointed to be the

United States Ambassador to Japan The is the Ambassadors of the United States, ambassador from the United States of America to Japan. History Beginning in 1854 with the Convention of Kanagawa, use of gunboat diplomacy by Commodore (United States), Commodore Matthew C. Perry, ...

from 1989 to 1993,

Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs The under secretary of state for political affairs is currently the fourth-ranking position in the United States Department of State, after the United States Secretary of State, secretary, the United States Deputy Secretary of State, deputy secre ...

from 1984 to 1989, and

United States Ambassador to the Philippines The Ambassador of the United States of America to the Republic of the Philippines () was established on July 4, 1946, after the Philippines gained its independence from the United States, as successor of the High Commissioner to the Philippines ...

from 1982 to 1984, during a critical period of political upheaval during the

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...

presidency. Armacost served as Acting Secretary of State from January 20, 1989, to January 25, 1989. Between 1995 and 2002, he served as president of the

. Armacost had received the President's Distinguished Service Award, the Defense Department's Distinguished Civilian Service Award, and the Secretary of State's Distinguished Services Award. Armacost was the author of three books, the most recent of which, ''Friends or Rivals?'', was published in 1996 and draws on his tenure as ambassador. He also co-edited, with Daniel Okimoto, ''The Future of America's Alliances in Northeast Asia'', published in 2004 by

Stanford Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth governor of and th ...

Walter H. Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center. Armacost has served on numerous corporate and nonprofit boards, including TRW,

AFLAC Aflac Incorporated (American Family Life Assurance Company) is an American insurance company and is the largest provider of supplemental insurance in the United States. It was founded in 1955 and is based in Columbus, Georgia. In the U.S., it ...

Applied Materials Applied Materials, Inc. is an American corporation that supplies equipment, services and software for the manufacture of semiconductor (integrated circuit) chips for electronics, flat panel displays for computers, smartphones, televisions, and ...

, USEC, Inc.,

Cargill Cargill, Incorporated is an American multinational food corporation based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, Minnetonka, Minnesota, and incorporated in Wilmington, Delaware. Founded in 1865 by William Wallace Cargill, it is the largest privately held c ...

, Inc,

Carleton College Carleton College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1866, the main campus is between Northfield and the approximately Carleton ...

, and The Asia Foundation. Armacost received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

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 ...

(1958) and an honorary degree (1989) from Carleton College. He was an international fellow of the

School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University The School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) is the international affairs and public policy school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university located in Morningside Heights, Manhattan, New York City. SIPA offers Master of I ...

in 1961. He earned his Ph.D. from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1965. Armacost was a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration. He was chairman of Carleton College's board of trustees from 2004 to 2008. Armacost died at his home near San Francisco, on March 8, 2025, at the age of 87.

Honors

، Order of the Rising Sun, Grand Cordon, 2007 (Japan).Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA)
2007 Autumn Conferment of Decorations on Foreign Nationals, p. 1.
/ref>

References

External links

*
The Mismatch between Northeast Asian Change and American Distractions
by Michael H. Armacost, ''NBR Analysis'', January 2007 *
Forging Even Closer Japan-US Ties , Nippon.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Armacost, Michael 1937 births 2025 deaths 20th-century American diplomats Place of birth missing (living people) Acting United States secretaries of state Ambassadors of the United States to Japan Ambassadors of the United States to the Philippines Brookings Institution people Carleton College alumni Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni Grand Cordons of the Order of the Rising Sun National Bureau of Asian Research Pomona College faculty Stanford University fellows Under secretaries of state for political affairs United States National Security Council staffers White House Fellows