Hon. Thomas Countryman, Minister-Counselor

Last Name: Countryman

First Name: Thomas

Middle Name: M

Nickname: Tom

Medals and Honors: Chairman of the Board of the Arms Control Association

ACNSL Offices and Committees: Arms Control

Rank: Minister-Counselor

Service/Department: Senior Foreign Service, Department of State

Last or Significant Assignment: Senior Advisor for the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (2021-22); Acting Undersecretary for Arms Control, and Assistant Secretary for International Security and Nonproliferation
Areas of Experience: Arms Control, International Security, Non-proliferation, WMD

Articles, Books and Publications

• https://www.justsecurity.org/70608/the-strength-of-americas-apolitical-military/

• https://www.justsecurity.org/51592/one-year-later/ Regarding State Dept Official Discharged; with Ambassadors Silliman and McCarthy (2018)

• https://www.state.gov/telephonic-press-briefing-with-thomas-countryman-state-department-international-security-and-nonproliferation-isn-senior-advisor/

Thomas Countryman is retired from the Senior Foreign Service in January 2017 after 35 years of service. At that time, he served simultaneously as acting Undersecretary for Arms Control, and as Assistant Secretary for International Security and Nonproliferation, a position he held since September 2011. The ISN Bureau leads the US effort to prevent the spread of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.

Tom Countryman is Chairman of the Board of the Arms Control Association. The ACA is a nonpartisan NGO which analyzes key security issues and advises the executive branch, Congress and the public on choices to promote global security and reduce the risk that weapons of mass destruction will be used.

After serving in Belgrade, Washington and Cairo, he advised Ambassador Albright on Middle East affairs at the US Mission to the United Nations, and he was Director for Near East affairs at the National Security Council.

He directed State’s Office of South Central European Affairs, and was Minister for Political Affairs in Rome, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy in Athens (including five months as Charge d'Affaires), and Foreign Policy Advisor to the US Marine Commandant.

Before ISN, he was Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Political-Military Affairs, and Deputy Assistant Secretary for European Affairs with responsibility for the Balkans.

He returned to State in 2021-22 to serve as a Senior Advisor for the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

Mr. Countryman graduated from Washington University in St. Louis (summa cum laude) in economics and studied at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He speaks Serbo-Croatian, Arabic, German, Italian and Greek.

He was born and raised in Tacoma,WA.