James W. Pardew

The Honorable James W. Pardew is an American diplomat, international negotiator and former U.S. Ambassador to Bulgaria.

Diplomacy
Ambassador Pardew began his civil service and diplomatic career in 1995 as a member of the Senior Executive Service and Chief of the Balkan Force in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Department of Defense. He subsequently served in the State Department from 1996 until 2008. He was nominated for the rank of Ambassador by President Clinton and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in 1997.

Dayton Peace Agreement in Bosnia
Pardew was appointed as the Secretary of Defense Representative to the U.S. Negotiating Team following the tragic accident in August, 1995 in Bosnia when his predecessor, Dr. Joseph Kruzel, and two other members of the Negotiating Team were killed. Pardew participated directing in the negotiating process led by Ambassador Richard Holbrooke from his appointment until the parties reached an agreement at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio in November, 1995. He participated in the international signing ceremoney hosted by President Chirac of France in Paris in December,1995 as the representative of the Secretary of Defense.

Bosnia Train and Equip Program
Pardew was assigned to direct an interagency team in Washington in 1996 to implement an informal agreement between U.S. President Clinton and the Bosnian President Izetbegovic to assist the Bosnian Federation in developing a national defense system which would provide military security within Bosnia.

This unique endeavor, known as the Train and Equip (T&E) Program for Bosnia, consisted of staff officers from the Department of Defense, State Department and the Intelligence Community. Using international donor funding and equipment and equipment made available to the program by the U.S. Congress, the T&E program assisted the Federation in developing a defensive military capability which ultimately enabled U.S. and NATO forces to reduce their presence in Bosnia. Additionally, the program, valued at an estimated 500 million dollars, reduced the influence of extremist elements in the country, oriented Bosnia toward NATO and Europe and served as the basis for full military integration with Bosnia in a consolidated Ministry of Defense.

War and Peace in Kosovo
From 1999-2001, Pardew was the Deputy Special Advisor to the President and Secretary of State for Democracy in the Balkans during the NATO conflict in Kosovo and the subsequent peace settlement. In that capacity, Pardew engaged directly in negotiations over Kosovo with President Slobodan Milosevic of Serbia and with a variety of Kosovo political leaders. He was the Washington coordinator for the international Kosovo Verification Mission. Following the successful NATO bombing campaign, Pardew assisted in establishing U.S. and international civilian presences in Kosovo and in the development of local Kosovo institutions of government and security.

Ohrid Framework Agreement in Macedonia
Secretary of State Powell dispatched Ambassador Pardew to Macedonia in the early summer of 2001 to seek a solution to an ethnic conflict with the potential to escalate into a fulll-scale civil war with consequences for the entire region. Pardew, as the U.S. negotiator, joined with Francois Leotard of France, the European Union negotiator, to seek a peaceful settlement to the disputes. After weeks of negotiations in Skopje and at the Presidential retreat on Lake Ohrid, the parties agreed to the Framework Agreement for Macedonia. The Ohrid Agreement was signed by the parties and witnessed by Pardew and Leotard in August, 2001.

U.S. Ambassador to Bulgaria
During his tenure as the U.S. Ambassador to Bulgaria from 2002-2005, Bulgaria became a full member of NATO and completed all accession negotiations for European Union membership. Bulgaria also cooperated closely with the U.S in extablishing a joint military training facility in Bulgaria and in destroying missiles and other military technology left over from the Cold War. In addition, Ambassador Pardew oversaw the completion of a new $70 million U.S Embassy complex in Sofia.

NATO: Afghanistan, Iraq and Independence of Kosovo
Pardew was Deputy Assistant Secretary General of NATO for Operation and Crisis Management, Brussels, Belgium, from 2005-2008. During that period, he directed an international staff organization engaged in operational policy development for the Secretary General of NATO for NATO operations in Afghanistan and Kosovo and the NATO training mission in Iraq.

Based on his extensive background in Balkan conflicts, Pardew also participated in the international Contact Group deliberations dealing with international policy toward Kosovo as the NATO reparesentative. He also provided NATO input to the United Nations organization with produced the Ahtisaari Plan resulting in the independence of Kosovo.

Military Service
Pardew began his professional career as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Army. He left the Army in 1994 after 28 years of active duty service with the rank of Colonel.

While in the Army, he held a variety of staff and command assignments including Vice Director for Intelligence, J-2, Joint Chiefs of Staff; Director of Foreign Intelligence and Chief of Current Intelligence, Army General Staff, in the Pentagon during the collapse of the Soviet Union and the first U.S. war with Iraq.

His service abroad included assignments in Germany, Turkey, Japan, a combat tour in Vietnam and service in "Operation Retore Hope" in Somalia.

Awards and Honors
Pardew was presented the Department of State Distinguished Honor Award in 1996; the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Civilian Service in 1996; the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal in 1994 and the Hughes Award from the National Military Intelligence Association in 1994.

His military decorations include the National Defense Superior Service Medal; the Legion of Merit (2); Bronze Star Medal (2); and the Air Medal.

Pardew was awarded the Stara Planina Medal by the President of Bulgaria for his service as U.S. Ambassador to Bulgaria.

Education
Pardew has a Master of Arts Degree in Political Science, from Loyola University of Chicago, awarded in 1973. He is a 1966 graduate of Arkansas State University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Journalism. He also is a 1988 graduate of the U.S. Army War College and the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College in 1979

Personal Background
Pardew was born in 1944 in Memphis, Tennessee but grew up in Jonesboro, Arkansas. He is married to the former Kathy Hoffman. They have three sons: Paul, Jon and David.