Bruce Friedman
Bruce Friedman, is a 37-year career Department of State Civil Service officer with extensive experience in Latin America. Prior to returning to the Office of Brazilian and Southern Cone Affairs in September 2021, Bruce served as Senior Coordinator for the Western Hemisphere for the Office of the President’s Special Envoy for Climate (SPEC). From April 2020 to April 2021, he served in the Office of the Vice President as Special Advisor for the Western Hemisphere and Africa. Prior to that he served as the U.S. Charge d’Affaires in the Republic of Paraguay. Bruce is also an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University’s Graduate School of Foreign Service. He has served as Acting Coordinator for Cuban Affairs, and as Special Coordinator for Venezuela. He was also the Chief of Staff to the Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, and Senior Policy Advisor to the U.S. Ambassador to the Organization of American States.
Bruce served in the U.S. Embassy in Caracas as Acting Political Counselor. He also served as Special Assistant to the Ambassador at the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires; Political Officer in the U.S. Embassies in Quito and La Paz; Regional Desk Officer in the State Department’s Office of Central American Affairs; and Policy Planning Officer in the State Department’s Western Hemisphere Bureau. Bruce received the State Department’s Superior Honor Award eight times, and the State Department’s Quality Performance Award. He entered the State Department as a Presidential Management Intern, and prior to that received the Dean’s Fellowship for Outstanding Academic Performance at Colombia University’s School of International Affairs, from which he earned a Master’s Degree. He holds a B.A. cum laude in International Relations from Tufts.