[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 335 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. CON. RES. 335

 Honoring the exceptional achievements of Ambassador Richard Holbrooke 
  and recognizing the significant contributions he has made to United 
States national security, humanitarian causes, and peaceful resolutions 
                       of international conflict.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 16, 2010

Mrs. Lowey (for herself, Mr. Berman, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, and Mr. Turner) 
 submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to 
                    the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Honoring the exceptional achievements of Ambassador Richard Holbrooke 
  and recognizing the significant contributions he has made to United 
States national security, humanitarian causes, and peaceful resolutions 
                       of international conflict.

Whereas Ambassador Richard Holbrooke devoted nearly 50 years of his life to 
        public service, working tirelessly to defend United States interests 
        abroad and foster peace amongst warring factions for the betterment of 
        United States and international stability and security;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke was a proud New York native who attended Scarsdale 
        High School before continuing his education at Brown University in 1962, 
        where he was editor of the Brown Daily Herald;
Whereas one month after graduating from university, Ambassador Holbrooke, 
        inspired by President Kennedy's call to service, entered the Foreign 
        Service, where he spent the next 6 years focused on Vietnam, including 
        serving with the United States Agency for International Development 
        (USAID) in the Mekong Delta, as an assistant to Ambassadors Henry Cabot 
        Lodge and Maxwell Taylor, as an author of one volume of the Pentagon 
        Papers, and a member of the team led by Averell Harriman and future 
        Secretary of State Cyrus Vance at the Paris Peace talks in 1968;
Whereas from 1970 to 1972 Ambassador Holbrooke served as the Peace Corps 
        Director in Morocco;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke was the only person to have served as Assistant 
        Secretary of State for two regions of the world, having served as 
        Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs from 
        1977 to 1981, during which he was a tireless advocate for the expanded 
        admission of tens of thousands of Indochinese refugees to the United 
        States, and as Assistant Secretary of State for European and Canadian 
        Affairs from 1994 to 1996;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke brokered the 1995 Dayton Accords which ended over 3 
        years of bloody sectarian war that took the lives of more than 100,000 
        Bosnians;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke marshaled many diplomatic and military tools and 
        deftly negotiated concessions from all warring factions that created the 
        conditions for peace;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke's relentless pursuit of a negotiated solution to 
        ethnic and religious conflict in Bosnia saved tens of thousands of 
        innocent lives;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke served as United States Ambassador to Germany from 
        1993 to 1994, where he helped to found the American Academy of Berlin, a 
        center for United States-German cultural exchange;
Whereas from 1999 to 2001, Ambassador Holbrooke served as the United States 
        Permanent Representative to the United Nations where he was a critical 
        partner in the implementation of Congressionally-led efforts to lower 
        the dues the United States paid to the United Nations, to implement 
        certain reforms to the United Nations financial system, to settle 
        substantial and longstanding United States arrears to the United 
        Nations, to improve management within the United Nations, to include 
        Israel in the United Nations' Western European and Others Group, to end 
        Israel's longtime exclusion from regional deliberations, to render more 
        effective the United Nations' efforts to address conflicts and save 
        lives in Africa and East Timor, and to raise the profile of public 
        health as a matter of global security, including through debate and 
        passage of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1308 on HIV/AIDS;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke continued to marshal international attention and 
        resources to combat the HIV/AIDS crisis by catalyzing the private sector 
        response to the global AIDS pandemic through the Global Business 
        Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, which mobilized 
        corporations to address HIV/AIDS, garnered CEOs to be an advocacy force 
        in the fight, and served as the private sector focal point for the 
        Global Fund on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke served as a steadfast emissary of the United States 
        as the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, tirelessly 
        advocating for United States interests and peace in the region, 
        mobilizing unprecedented international support, facilitating economic, 
        transit, trade, and security cooperation between Afghanistan and 
        Pakistan, and working to enhance stability, to build prosperity, and to 
        counter extremism and terrorism in the region;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke forged a new civilian-led, multi-agency approach 
        seeking to bring stability and development to the lives of millions 
        striving for a better future;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke was one of the most talented diplomats for the 
        United States and possessed a fierce determination and intelligence in 
        advocating for United States security interests around the world, 
        including in Southeast Asia and post-Cold War Europe, at the United 
        Nations, and most recently in Afghanistan and Pakistan;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke was a prolific writer and communicator, serving as 
        the Managing Editor of Foreign Policy, authoring works such as ``To End 
        A War'', ``Counsel to the President'', one volume of the Pentagon 
        Papers, and a monthly column in The Washington Post, and sharing the art 
        of mediation with countless audiences;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke lent his expertise toward the improvement of 
        management and organization for a host of nongovernmental organizations, 
        serving as a board member of Refugees International, the Council on 
        Foreign Relations, the National Endowment for Democracy, the American 
        Museum of Natural History, and the Citizens Committee for New York City, 
        as Chairman of the Asia Society, as Founding Chairman of the American 
        Academy in Berlin, and as a Woodrow Wilson Scholar;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke motivated many Americans to enter public service 
        and served as an inspirational leader and public servant, mentoring 
        countless United States Department of State officers and future 
        ambassadors;
Whereas from Southeast Asia to post-Cold War Europe and around the globe, people 
        have a better chance of a peaceful future because of Ambassador 
        Holbrooke's lifetime of service;
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke was renowned internationally for his energy, 
        persistence, sharp intellect, and skills of persuasion; and
Whereas Ambassador Holbrooke leaves behind his beloved wife Kati, sons David and 
        Anthony, step-children Elizabeth and Chris, daughter-in-law Sarah, four 
        grandchildren, and countless friends and colleagues: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) honors the exceptional achievements of Ambassador 
        Richard Holbrooke and recognizes the significant contributions 
        he has made to United States national security, humanitarian 
        causes, and peaceful resolutions of international conflict; and
            (2) respectfully requests that the Clerk of the House 
        transmit an enrolled copy of this resolution to the family of 
        Ambassador Richard Holbrooke.
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