U.S./Russia Tensions Examined

A seasoned diplomat will delve into the growing tensions between the U.S. and Russia in his talk on Nov. 20.

Ambassador Ian Kelly will deliver the lecture “The U.S., Russia, and Bridging the East-West Divide” at 4:15 p.m., Nov. 20 in the Alumni Recitation Hall, Room 302.

“Ambassador Kelly has broad experience in the foreign service, particularly in the former Soviet republics,” says Edward Cohn, assistant professor of history and member of the Rosenfield Program Committee. “It is a privilege to welcome him to Grinnell.”

Kelly is the Diplomat in Residence for the Midwest, based at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He was most recently the U.S. Ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OCSE). He has previously held positions with the Department of State in Rome, Ankara, Belgrade, and Moscow, and has had several regional assignments that took him to all 15 former Soviet republics. Before joining the Foreign Service, Ambassador Kelly taught Russian at Columbia University, and received his doctorate there in Slavic Languages and Literatures in 1986.

As a Diplomat in Residence for the Midwest, Kelly leads a program designed to recruit college students to Foreign Service careers.

The Rosenfield Program in Public Affairs, International Relations, and Human Rights is sponsoring the lecture.