Robert Joseph - Education and Career

Education and Career

Ambassador Joseph was nominated to, and attended the United States Naval Academy (1967–1969), at the height of the Vietnam War. He earned a B.A. at St. Louis University in 1971, M.A. at the University of Chicago in 1973, and Ph.D at Columbia in 1978.

Joseph has served as a professor at a number of institutions, including Carleton College, Tulane University, and The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. He was professor of National Security Studies at the National Defense University (1992–2001); he also founded its and Director & Founder of the Center for Counterproliferation Research. In 1993, he joined the faculty at the National War College. In 2009, Professor Joseph taught at Missouri State University's Defense and Strategic Studies program.

Joseph has held several posts relating to security and nuclear policy. These posts include the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (nuclear policy), Director of Theater Nuclear Forces Policy, U.S. Department of Defense (International Security Policy), Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Forces and Arms Control Policy, and Ambassador to the U.S.-Russian Consultative Commission on Nuclear Testing under George H. W. Bush.

In January 2001, as George W. Bush prepared to take office, Joseph served on a panel for nuclear weapons issues sponsored by the National Institute for Public Policy, a conservative think tank. Other members of the panel included Stephen Hadley, William Schneider, Jr., and Stephen Cambone.

He was Senior Director for Proliferation Strategy, Counterproliferation and Homeland Defense within the National Security Council (2001–2005). In this capacity, he supervised the portion of President George W. Bush's 2003 State of the Union Address that dealt with intelligence on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. Chairman Dianne Feinstein later proposed that her Senate Select Committee on Intelligence's probe of intelligence in the run up to Operation Iraqi Freedom question staff such as Dr. Joseph. In 2005 he succeeded John R. Bolton as Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security.

Ambassador Joseph is well known for being instrumental in creating the Proliferation Security Initiative and as the architect of the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism. He was also the US chief negotiator to Libya in 2003 who convinced the Libyans to give up their WMD programs.

His past positions have included:

• Undersecretary for arms control & internat. security, US Department State, Washington, (2005–2007)
• Senior scholar, director of studies National Institute for Public Policy (2004–2005)
• Special assistant to the President and Senior Director of Proliferation strategy, counterproliferation and homeland defense, NSC, Washington (2001–2005)
• founder, director, Center for Counterproliferation Research, National Defense University, Washington (1992–2001)
• professor of national security studies, National Defense University, Washington (1992–2001)
• ambassador, U.S.-Russian consultative commission on nuclear testing, US Department of Defense, Washington
• dep. asst. sec. nuclear forces & arms control policy, US Department of Defense, Washington (1989–1991)
• prin. dep. asst. sec. for internat. security policy, US Department of Defense, Washington (1987–1989)
• acting prin. dep. asst. sec. for internat. security policy, US Department of Defense, Washington, 1987
• Director of theater nuclear forces policy, US Mission, NATO, Brussels, (1985–1987)
• chief nuclear policy/plans section, US Department of Defense, Washington (1982–1984)
• assistant for nuclear policy, Office Under Secretary, US Department of Defense, Washington (1980–1981)
• assistant for general purpose forces, US Department of Defense,, Washington, 1979
• assistant for negotiations, Office Asst. Sec. for Internat. Security Affairs, US Department of Defense, Washington, 1978