ACFR President Doug Brown presents the Distinguished Service award to Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker at the May 6 Annual Conference dinner as Board of Advisors Chairman John Maisto, to Crocker's left, and Executive Director Phil French look on.
“Strategic Thinking in an Era of Instability”
May 6-7, 2011 was an eventful time to be in Washington, D.C. for ACFR’s 16th Annual Conference. ACFR members gathered in the historic Hall of the Americas of the Organization of American States to present the Distinguished Service award to Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker, whom President Obama only two days earlier had nominated as ambassador to Afghanistan.
Congressman Jim Cooper (D-TN), in his remarks opening the formal part of the conference, said that thanks to the successful operation against bin Laden, “the world’s only superpower is finally acting like a superpower again.” He reminded us that understanding foreign relations is not optional; it is vital to daily life in our globalized world; “I hope you realize how important your local Committee is.” Citing his own membership in the Nashville Committee, Rep. Cooper stated, “We all need informed discussions like this, and we need them in every city and town in America.”
Link to Ambassador Crocker's Bio
