Thomas R. Pickering

Vice Chairman, Hills & Company

Ambassador Pickering is vice chairman of Hills & Company, an international consulting firm providing advice to U.S. businesses on investment, trade, and risk assessment issues abroad, particularly in emerging market economies. He retired in 2006 as senior vice president international relations for Boeing. He has had a career spanning five decades as a U.S. diplomat, serving as under secretary of state for political affairs, ambassador to the United Nations, ambassador to Russia, India, Israel, Nigeria, Jordan and El Salvador. He also served on assignments in Zanzibar and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. He holds the personal rank of Career Ambassador, the highest in the U.S. Foreign Service. He has held numerous other positions at the State Department, including executive secretary and special assistant to Secretaries Rogers and Kissinger and assistant secretary for the bureau of oceans, environmental and scientific affairs.  He is based in Washington, DC.

Americas

U.S. Detention of Child Migrants
Tens of thousands of unaccompanied children have been arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border each year, sparking debate over how to respond. How is the Joe Biden administration handling it?

Backgrounder by Amelia Cheatham and Diana Roy March 27, 2023 Renewing America

United Nations

Funding the United Nations: How Much Does the U.S. Pay?
Many UN agencies, programs, and missions receive crucial funding from the United States. The Trump administration sharply reduced funding to some UN agencies, but President Biden has largely reversed those cuts.

Article by CFR.org Editors March 13, 2023

Refugees and Displaced Persons

How Does the U.S. Refugee System Work?
The United States has long been a safe haven for refugees from around the world. President Biden is working to expand the country’s resettlement program after the Trump administration made sharp cuts.

Backgrounder by Claire Klobucista, James McBride and Diana Roy February 15, 2023 Renewing America

Top Stories on CFR

Russia

Putin-Xi Summit Reinforces Anti-U.S. Partnership
The meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Moscow helped both give the impression of a united front, but underlying tensions were also discernible.

In Brief by Thomas Graham March 24, 2023

Immigration and Migration

U.S. Immigration Policy, With Edward Alden

Podcast
Edward Alden, the Bernard L. Schwartz senior fellow at CFR and Ross Dist Visiting Professor at Western Washington University, sits down with James M. Lindsay to discuss the crisis at the U.S. southern border and the domestic debates over U.S. immigration policy.

Podcast with James M. Lindsay, Edward Alden, Ester Fang and Gabrielle Sierra March 21, 2023 The President’s Inbox

Peru

How Peru’s Crisis Could Send Shockwaves Through the Region
The mass protests that have rocked Peru since December threaten to upend regional supply chains, intensify migration flows, and strain Lima’s bilateral relations.  

In Brief by Will Freeman and Ariana Rios March 22, 2023