Former ambassador Ted Osius is President & CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council. Founded in 1984, the Council represents 180 of the largest American businesses in Southeast Asia through its headquarters in Washington, DC, and its seven regional offices. A diplomat for thirty years, Ambassador Osius served from 2014 to 2017 as U.S. ambassador to Vietnam where he devised and implemented strategies to deepen economic, security, and cultural ties between the two countries. In October 2021, Osius published his most recent book, Nothing Is Impossible: America’s Reconciliation with Vietnam, with a Foreword by former Secretary of State John Kerry, covering the two countries’ 25-year journey from adversaries to friends and partners.
Ambassador Osius earned a Bachelor’s degree from Harvard University, a Master’s degree from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, and an Honorary Doctorate from Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Education. He was the first U.S. ambassador to receive the Order of Friendship from the President of Vietnam. He serves on the Asia Foundation’s Board of Trustees and is a member of the American Academy of Diplomacy.