Washington, D.C. — Today, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright died at age 84. Following the announcement of her death, Patrick Gaspard, president and CEO of the Center for American Progress, released the following statement:
Madeleine Albright was a trailblazing figure in American diplomacy and a champion for justice and democracy around the world. She was a classic American success story, coming to this country as a political refugee from Czechoslovakia and eventually rising to become the nation’s top diplomat. As U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and later, America’s first female secretary of state, she was the face of U.S. foreign policy in the 1990s. She was a champion of freedom who also recognized the importance of using the power of the United States to help preserve democratic values across the globe. She helped lead the push for expanding NATO and played a pivotal role in urging the U.S. peacekeeping mission in Bosnia. Secretary Albright also empowered a generation of rising foreign policymakers into the community of diplomatic practitioners at the State Department, National Security Council, and U.S. embassies. And she was a trusted partner to U.S. military officials, who valued her foreign policy advice. She served from 2010 to 2017 on CAP’s board of directors, providing sage and valued advice on foreign policy matters. Secretary Albright’s influence and generosity stretched on long past her official service. I will miss her sage counsel, particularly in this challenging moment as we face the brutal consequences of autocracy. Most of all, I will miss her humanity and great wit.
For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, please contact Sam Hananel at [email protected].