The Leaderboard: Philip Goldberg

The Leaderboard profiles the people behind the policies of the Asia-Pacific.
Who is he?

Philip S. Goldberg is a career diplomat who formerly served as U.S. ambassador to Bolivia, chief of mission in Kosovo, and deputy chief of mission in Chile. Goldberg served as assistant secretary in the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research from 2010 to 2013.

Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Goldberg worked as a liaison officer between the City of New York, the consular community, and the United Nations.

Philip Goldberg. Source: U.S. Department of State, U.S. Government Work.

Philip Goldberg. Source: U.S. Department of State, U.S. Government Work.

Why is he in the news?

President Barack Obama on July 30 nominated Goldberg to be the next ambassador to the Philippines. He succeeds Ambassador Harry K. Thomas, Jr. who has held the post since 2010.

What can we expect from him?

Goldberg’s previous diplomatic postings make him well-placed to lead the U.S. Embassy in Manila, one of the largest U.S. embassies in the world. The Manila mission employs about 300 Americans and 1,000 Foreign Service national employees.

As the former head of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, Goldberg possesses technical knowledge that could be useful to U.S. efforts in assisting the Philippines’ counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency efforts.

Ambassador Goldberg will face the challenge of addressing the South China Sea maritime territorial dispute between China and the Philippines within the framework of the U.S.-Philippine alliance.  Secretary of State John Kerry has expressed support for Manila’s efforts to bring the dispute to a United Nations tribunal during a telephone call with Philippine foreign secretary Albert Del Rosario, and the Senate on July 29 unanimously approved a resolution calling for the peaceful resolution of maritime and territorial disputes in the East and South China Seas.

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