Draft:Abraham Katz

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Abraham Katz
United States Ambassador to the OECD
In office
1981–1984
Preceded byHerbert Salzman
Succeeded byEdward Streator
Personal details
Born(1926-12-04)December 4, 1926
Brooklyn, New York
DiedFebruary 5, 2013(2013-02-05) (aged 86)
Alma mater

Abraham Katz (December 4, 1926-February 5, 2013) was an American diplomat and United States Ambassador to the OECD.[1][2] He also served as US Assistant Secretary of Commerce for International Economic Policy, President of the United States Council for International Business for 14 years, and as President of the International Organisation of Employers.

Early life[edit]

Katz was born in Brooklyn, New York.[1] He graduated from Brooklyn College (B.A., cum laude, political science, international relations, law and organization, 1948); Columbia University, School of International Affairs (Master of International Affairs, international relations, Latin American Affairs, 1950); and Harvard University (Ph.D., political science, Soviet Government, international law, international relations, political theory, Russian history, Soviet economics, 1968).[3][1] His foreign languages were French, Spanish, Russian, and Hebrew.[1] Katz was married to Marion Sheinberger in 1996, had three children, and resided in Washington, D.C., and in Hollywood, Florida.[1][4][5][6]

Foreign Service career[edit]

Katz spent 34 years with the United States Foreign Service.[7][8]

In 1950 Katz began his government career as foreign affairs officer in the Department of State.[1] In 1951 he was the Officer-in-charge of reimbursable military assistance, in the Office of the Special Assistant for Mutual Defense Assistance, in the Department.[3] In 1951-53 he was vice consul and principal officer at the American consulate in Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico, and in 1953-55 he was second secretary and economic officer in the American embassy in Mexico, D.F., Mexico.[1][3] In 1956 he attended Russian language training at the Foreign Service Institute, and in 1956-57 he attended graduate studies in Soviet affairs at Harvard University.[1][3]

1957-59 he was Chief, Foreign Economic Section, Soviet Union and Eastern Europe Division, Bureau of Intelligence and Research of the Department of State.[7][1] In 1958-59 Katz was on the staff of President Eisenhower's Committee on World Economic Practices.[7]

In 1959-64 Katz was First Secretary of Delegation, U.S. Mission to NATO in Paris and European Regional Organizations (USRO), and Secretary of Delegation, U.S. Mission to OECD.[3]

Katz was Counselor for Economic Affairs at the American Embassy in Moscow, in the USSR (1964-66).[7][1][3] He attended the Center for International Affairs at Harvard University as a fellow in 1966-67.[1][3]

In 1967-74 he was Director of the Office of OECD, European Communities and Atlantic Political Economic Affairs, Bureau of European Affairs, in the Department of State in Washington, D.C.[1][3]

In 1974-78 Katz was Deputy Chief of the United States Mission to the OECD in Paris, France, with the diplomatic rank of Minister Counselor.[3][7][1][3]

In October 1978-January 1980 he was on detail to the Department of Commerce as Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Economic Policy and Research.[3][1] In 1980-81 Katz was on detail to the Department of Commerce as Assistant Secretary of Commerce for International Economic Policy, having been nominated by President Carter.[1][3][9]

On July 9, 1981, President Reagan approved the nomination of Katz to be the Representative of the United States of America to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, with the rank of Ambassador, a position that he held from August 1981 until May 31, 1984.[1][6][10]

Later life[edit]

Katz became President of the United States Council for International Business (USCIB) on June 1, 1984, a post from which he retired in 1999.[7][11] He retired with the title of President Emeritus.[8][10]

At the International Organisation of Employers General Council on May 30, 2006, Katz was elected President, a position he held through 2008, leading an organization then comprising 146 members from around the world.[7][5] In this role, and as Employer Member of the ILO Governing Body, he advocated for the global business community in international forums.[7] He retired as Honorary President.[8][12][13]

Katz was also an author on political science and economics.[7] He authored Politics of Economic Reform in the Soviet Union (1972), and The Atlantic Community Reappraised, A Washington Perspective, Proceedings of the Academy of Political Science, XXIX, 2, 1958.[6][10]

He died in New York City after a short illness, age 86, and his funeral services were held at the Park Avenue Synagogue in Manhattan.[7][4][5]

Honors[edit]

The honors conferred on Katz included:

In 1953, he received the Commendable Service Award of the US Department of State.[6]

In 1963, he received the Meritorious Service Award of the US Department of State.[7][8][6]

In 1998, USCIB awarded him the USCIB International Leadership Award.[7][8][5]

He received the French honor of Grand Officier – Ordre national du Mérite.[7][8]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Digital Library Collections (PDF). United States Government.

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Nomination of Abraham Katz To Be United States Representative to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development | The American Presidency Project". www.presidency.ucsb.edu.
  2. ^ "Obituaries; Mr Abraham Katz"
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "NOMINATIONS OF ABRAHAM KATZ, WILLIAM J. DRIVER, AND JOHN L. PALMER" (PDF). March 19, 1980.
  4. ^ a b "ABRAHAM KATZ Obituary (2013) - New York, NY". The New York Times. February 7, 2013.
  5. ^ a b c d "USCIB Mourns Loss of Longtime President Abraham Katz". USCIB. February 7, 2013.
  6. ^ a b c d e "WHORM Subject File Code: IT111; (International Organizations – U.S. Mission to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development); Case file Number(s): BEGIN-399999; Box: 36", Ronald Reagan Presidential Library Digital Library Collections.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "AMBASSADOR KATZ, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATION OF EMPLOYERS, DIES IN NEW YORK, AGE 86" (PDF).
  8. ^ a b c d e f "Classnotes; 1968", Harvard Kennedy School Magazine.
  9. ^ "Newsletter". United States Department of State. September 25, 1980.
  10. ^ a b c "Global Accords for Sustainable Development: Enabling Technologies and Links to Finance and Legal Institutions; Biographical Sketches". Global System for Sustainable Development.
  11. ^ "Monthly review". American Chamber of Commerce for Italy. September 25, 1984 – via Google Books.
  12. ^ "World Employers Elect New Leader," May 30, 2006.
  13. ^ "Introduction made by IOE President, Abraham Katz, at the launch of the World Bank’s 2008 Doing Business report in New York on 26 September 2007," Chemin de Joinville.



Category:1926 births Category:Ambassadors of the United States to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Category:American expatriates in France Category:American expatriates in Mexico Category:Brooklyn College alumni Category:Diplomats from New York City Category:Grand Officers of the Ordre national du Mérite Category:Harvard University alumni Category:Jewish Americans Category:People from Brooklyn Category:People from Hollywood, Florida Category:People from Washington, D.C. Category:School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University alumni Category:United States Department of Commerce officials Category:United States Foreign Service personnel Category:20th-century American diplomats Category:20th-century American non-fiction writers

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