Date and Time
November 17, 2005
3:00 PM - 4:30 PM

Availability
Open to the public
No RSVP required

Speaker
Charles Snyder - Senior Representative on Sudan, U.S. Department of State. at United States Department of State

A peaceful Sudan is important to the United States to promote regional stability in the Horn of Africa. The signing of the historic Comprehensive Peace Agreement on January 9, 2005, ended more than two decades of human suffering and Africa's longest-running Civil war. It was the first tangible evidence that Sudan had begun to turn in the direction of peace and reconciliation when it inaugurated on July 9 its new Presidency of the Government of National Unity. The "New Sudan" subsequently appears to have passed a critical test when the parties remained committed to the Government of National Unity and the Comprehensive Peace Agreement following the tragic death of First Vice President John Garang on July 30.Mr. Snyder will discuss how Sudan and the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Darfur remain one of the United States' most important foreign policy priorities. He will explain how the U.S. is committed to ending the violence in Darfur, holding accountable those responsible for atrocities, and delivering humanitarian relief. He also will outline how the Comprehensive Peace Agreement holds the best prospect for remedying the grievances and ending the marginalization of other groups and regions of this geographically immense and culturally, racially, and religiously diverse country.

Charles Snyder is the U.S. Senior Representative on Sudan. Previously, he served as Acting Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs (November 2003-June 2004). He has also served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs (2001-2003), acting as policy point person for the Sudan Peace Initiative, framing policy toward Central Africa, and managing policy planning and budget programming for the State Departments Bureau of African Affairs (AF). From 1995-2001, he served as Director of the Office of Regional Affairs in the AF bureau, where he supported the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs on a wide-range of crosscutting policy and program issues, such as democracy, conflict resolution, human rights, labor, multilateral organizations, public affairs, congressional affairs, and crisis management.

Mr. Snyder served in the Senior Intelligence Service at the CIA as National Intelligence Officer for Africa from 1992 until April 1995. He retired from the U.S. Army in 1991 after 22 years of service. During the closing years of that career, he served as Senior Political-Military Advisor to State's Africa Bureau. He served as military advisor on the team which mediated the Tripartite Agreement between Cuba, Angola, and South Africa; led the team that established the Joint Military Monitoring Commission which implemented the ceasefire along the Angola-Namibia border; chaired he military discussions supporting the Portuguese mediation of the Angolan Civil War; and led the U.S. technical team supporting the successful Italian effort to negotiate an end to the Mozambican Civil War.

Mr. Snyder received a Bachelor's Degree in Economics from Fordham University, a Master of Business Administration in International Finance from American University, and conducted additional post-graduate work in International Relations at Catholic and Howard Universities. He is a Fellow of the Inter-University Seminar on Armed Forces and Societies, a Distinguished Visiting Lecturer of the Foreign Service Institute, and a life member of the African Studies Association.