Real Diplomacy

In recognition of Bill Richardson's leadership and diplomatic experience, President Bill Clinton appointed Bill the United States Ambassador to the United Nations.

Ambassador Richardson might have been surrounded by tradition and formality -- but the cowboy boot-wearing New Mexican was always true to his Western heritage. On his first day at the UN, Bill tried to shake the hand of every single delegate -- an idea that baffled his colleagues -- there were just too many of them! Bill was also a frequent visitor to the U.N. cafeteria; he would eat lunch and get to know the UN's regular employees -- many of whom spoke Spanish and who lived in New York and New Jersey. It has always been Governor Richardson's style to reach out to everyone around him and to try to hear every point of view -- he may have the ears of Presidents and international leaders, but he always listens to the men and women working in the kitchen too.

Bill Richardson has traveled to Africa multiple times on diplomatic missions. As Ambassador he traveled to Zaire(now the Democratic Republic of Congo) to try to ease that country's transition to Democracy. He has secured the release of hostages from Sudan and just this January negotiated a fragile cease-fire in Darfur. The trips to Africa have changed Governor Richardson's life -- he has seen first-hand the suffering that can exist in the world, and he has seen the hope that persists in the most persecuted heart. Touring refugee camps, witnessing the effects of famine, disease and unnecessary violence, has given Bill a uniquely personal perspective on global conflict, and what the United States can do to prevent needless suffering.


Bill has gone toe-to-toe with some of the world's toughest characters -- Saddam Hussein, North Korean generals, Burmese military leaders, Sudanese President al-Bashir and Fidel Castro -- to name a few. Presidents, Secretaries of State, and Prime Ministers soon came to know Bill as the go-to guy for tough hostage negotiations.

In 1994, Bill was on a fact-finding mission in North Korea when he learned that the North Koreans shot down a U.S. Army helicopter that had strayed into their airspace. President Clinton asked Bill to stay in North Korea until he got the soldiers out, and he went right to work. After days of tense discussions and stonewalling by the North Koreans, the world learned that pilot David Hilemon died when the helicopter went down, but that Bobby Hall, his co-pilot, was fine. Richardson refused to leave North Korea until he secured Hilemon's remains, and Bobby Hall was released a few weeks later.

The next year, two American contractors got lost in the Iraqi desert by mistakenly crossing the border and were arrested as spies by Saddam Hussein's Republican Guard. The negotiations weren't going well and Bill was sent to see what he could do. Bill met with Iraq's Ambassador to the United Nations, and Tariq Aziz, Iraq's foreign minister -- but the discussions kept stalling. Saddam would make the final decision, so a resolution depended on Bill's ability to negotiate a meeting and convince Saddam himself to release the hostages.

Bill traveled to Baghdad and met with Saddam and Aziz in one of the Royal Palaces. Saddam kept stalling for concessions and refused to consider release at first, but Bill eventually convinced Saddam to do the right thing. The two Americans were released to Bill and were home days later.

Governor Richardson knows the Middle East, and he knows diplomacy can work there -- he has done it before. Bill's understanding of the Middle East, and his belief in international diplomacy, have come together to form Bill's plan for Iraq. He knows that the only way to begin to stabilize Iraq, and the entire region, is for all American troops to be withdrawn. Once we are completely out of Iraq, then the hard diplomatic work must begin.


Governor Richardson's diplomatic missions have given him valuable first-hand experiences in some of the world's most dangerous places -- and in areas that America must focus on as we move deeper into the 21st century.

When the Governor was recently in Darfur, he kept being asked the same questions: "Where is America? Why don't they do anything? "

The United States has moved away from diplomacy under the Bush administration, but Bill Richardson believes that America must work with the rest of the world to solve our common problems. He has seen the impact of war, and it has reaffirmed his belief in the power of America and the power of diplomacy to end suffering.


In recognition of his efforts around the world, Bill has been nominated four times for the Nobel Peace Prize. Each nomination has focused on his international peace mediation, hostage rescue and his commitment to justice. One of the nominating letters put it best: "Bill Richardson has shown his fight in the struggle of humanity by shining the beam of reason into those corners of the world darkened by nuclear peril for far too long, helping to ensure that we can live in a world where arms hold us together -- they don't keep us apart."

This is the kind of leadership America needs.

Peace,
Chad (The Left) Shue