Jonathan Cohen

Jonathan Cohen
Acting United States Ambassador to the United Nations
United States Deputy Ambassador
to the United Nations

Jonathan Raphael Cohen1 is an American diplomat currently serving as United States Deputy Representative to the United Nations. He previously served as a Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, from August 2016 to June 2018.2 He was nominated by President Donald Trump in early 2018 to become United States Deputy Representative to the United Nations and was unanimously confirmed by the Senate on May 24, 2018.34 On January 1, 2019, Cohen assumed acting duties of Ambassador to the United Nations following the resignation of Nikki Haley the previous day.

Early life and education

Cohen is the son of Harry B. Cohen (March 1, 1938 – August 21, 2013)5 and Adrienne M. Cohen. Jonathan and his younger brother Sascha were raised in California, where their father was a colleague of William C. Dement at the Stanford University sleep research center. Their father, who earned a doctorate in Psychology from McGill University in 1963, left Stanford in 1972 to join the faculty of the University of California, Irvine medical school.6 Harry Cohen later served as the director of Mental Health Services for Orange County, California.7

In 1985, Jonathan Cohen received an AB in Politics from Princeton University.8 His senior thesis in Near Eastern Studies was entitled A Last Chance to Brighten the Faint Gleam of Peace: Direct Negotiations, the Arab Option for Regaining Sovereignty on the West Bank.9 After graduating from Princeton, Cohen continued graduate studies first at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and then at Georgetown University until 1986.10

Career

Cohen has served in various diplomatic positions representing the United States, beginning in 1986 when he entered the Foreign Service Institute. He served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Nicosia, Cyprus, from 2008-2011, Minister Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Paris from 2011-2013, and also served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq from 2013-2016.11 He also previously served in many roles in embassies or consulates in Bangkok, Jerusalem, Vienna, Stockholm, Ankara and Rome.

He was promoted to the position of Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs covering Cyprus, Greece and Turkey in August 2016. During his tenure as Deputy Assistant Secretary, Cohen met with Patriarch Bartholomew,12 and argued before the U.S. Helsinki Commission that the U.S. should work with Turkey to limit Iranian and Russian influence in the region.13

On February 13, 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump formally nominated Cohen to serve as the Deputy Representative of the United States to the United Nations, set to succeed Michele Sison if confirmed by the U.S. Senate.14 Cohen was unanimously confirmed by the Senate on May 24, 2018 and was sworn in on June 8, 2018.15 On January 1, 2019, Cohen assumed acting duties of Ambassador to the United Nations following the resignation of Nikki Haley the previous day.

References

1	PN1970 — Foreign Service, accessed January 29, 2019. LINK
2	Biography, accessed February 26, 2018. LINK
3	Eight Nominations Sent to the Senate Today, accessed February 26, 2018. LINK
4	PN1621 — Jonathan R. Cohen — Department of State, accessed February 26, 2018. LINK
5	Harry Bruce Cohen, accessed January 29, 2019. LINK
6	Dr. Harry Bruce Cohen, accessed January 29, 2019. LINK
7	Harry Bruce Cohen, accessed January 29, 2019. LINK
8,10,15	Ambassador Jonathan R. Cohen | usun.state.gov, at usun.state.gov. LINK
9	Undergraduate Senior Theses, 1924-2018, accessed January 29, 2019. LINK
11	President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Personnel to Key Administration Posts, accessed February 26, 2018. LINK
12	Visit of U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary Jonathan R. Cohen to the Ecumenical Patriarchate, accessed February 26, 2018. LINK
13	Testimony by Jonathan R. Cohen at the U.S. Helsinki Commission, accessed February 26, 2018. LINK
14	At UN, Jonathan Cohen Tapped by Trump as Haley's Deputy Amid Stalled UN Reforms, Sanctions Qs, Censorship, accessed February 26, 2018. LINK