Eric Edelman

Eric Steven Edelman
Eric Edelman, c. 2005
8th Under Secretary of Defense for Policy
In office August 9, 2005 – January 20, 2009
President	George W. Bush
Preceded by	Douglas Feith
Succeeded by	Michele Flournoy
United States Ambassador to Turkey
In office August 29, 2003 – June 19, 2005
Appointed by	George W. Bush
Preceded by	W. Robert Pearson
Succeeded by	Ross Wilson
United States Ambassador to Finland
In office August 27, 1998 – January 29, 2001
Appointed by	Bill Clinton
Preceded by	Derek Shearer
Succeeded by	Bonnie McElveen-Hunter
Personal details
Born	1951 Baltimore, Maryland
Spouse(s)	Patricia D. Edelman
Alma mater	Cornell University Yale University
Profession	Diplomat
Website	www.defenselink.mil at the Wayback Machine (archived March 6, 2008)

Eric Steven Edelman (born 1951) is a former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, former U.S. Ambassador to Turkey (2003–2005), former U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Finland (1998–2001), and former Principal Deputy Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs (2001–2003). A career Foreign Service Officer, Edelman entered the Senior Foreign Service in 1992. He is a recipient of the Secretary of Defense’s award for Distinguished Civilian Service (1993) and the State Department’s Superior Honor Award (1990 and 1996).

He retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in May 2009 and is a visiting scholar at the Philip Merrill Center for Strategic Studies at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), and Distinguished Fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. He was also an advisor for the 2012 Mitt Romney presidential campaign.

Edelman currently serves as co-chair for the Bipartisan Policy Center's Turkey Initiative.

Edelman received a B.A. in history and government from Cornell University in 1972, and a Ph.D. in U.S. diplomatic history from Yale University in 1981.

His diplomatic career began in 1980 when he was a member of the U.S. Middle East Delegation to the West Bank/Gaza Autonomy Talks Delegations (1980–1981). He was later a Watch Officer in the State Department Operations Center (1981–1982) and a Staff Officer on the Secretariat Staff (1982). From 1982 to 1984 he acted as Special Assistant to Secretary of State George P. Shultz. Then, from 1984 to 1986, he served as Director of Soviet Policies at the Office of Soviet Affairs at the Department of State. From 1987 to 1989, he was Head of the External Political Section at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. This was followed by an appointtment as Special Assistant to the Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs (April 1989–April 1990).