Prahar, Peter Alan, 1951-

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Peter Alan Prahar (born 1951) is an American diplomat. He notably served as U.S. Ambassador to the Federated States of Micronesia (2010-2012).

Growing up in the small Oregon coast town of Bandon, Prahar graduated from Bandon High School in 1969. After graduation, Prahar joined the Air Force, which sent him to the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California, to study Mandarin Chinese, and then to Air Force Intelligence School. Prahar served as an Air Force linguist from 1971 to 1975, with assignments in South Korea, Taiwan and Japan. Prahar also took classes at the International Christian University in Tokyo, transferring his credits back to the University of Michigan, from which graduated with a B.A. in Political Science. Prahar ran a Radio Shack store for about 10 years in San Francisco before joining the Foreign Service.

A career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Prahar’s early postings included tours in the China, Japan, Albania, Ireland, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali and as desk officer for Rwanda. He volunteered to work with the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) Mission in Kosovo in 1993. At the time, he told The Washington Post, “"Like a lot of people my age, I got interested in politics through the Vietnam War. I've always been interested in questions of peace and war -- and when the opportunity came to prevent a war from spreading, I jumped at it.” Prahar returned to Kosovo in 1998 to assist in establishing a U.S. observer mission.

He subsequently served as Deputy Director (and then Director) of the Office of Asian, African and European Programs in the Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement and as the Transnational Crime Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow before undertaking his ambassadorship. President Barack Obama nominated Prahar for the ambassadorship on October 9, 2009, and he was confirmed by the Senate November 20, presenting his credentials on February 5, 2010. He left his post on August 4, 2012.

Prahar and his wife, Hong Kong native Amy Kit-ling Choi Prahar, met on their first day at International Christian University in 1975 and married in 1977. He speaks Russian, Japanese, French, Albanian, German and both Mandarin and Cantonese Chinese in addition to English.

Archival Resources
Role Title Holding Repository
referencedIn Records of the Office of Speechwriting (Clinton Administration), 1993 - 2001. David Shipley's Files, 1995 - 1998 William J. Clinton Presidential Library & Museum
referencedIn Records of the National Security Council (Clinton Administration), 1993 - 2001. Cables, 1993 - 2001 William J. Clinton Presidential Library & Museum
Role Title Holding Repository
Relation Name
almaMaterOf Japan International Christian University corporateBody
employeeOf Radio Shack Corporation. corporateBody
memberOf United States. Air Force corporateBody
employeeOf United States. Department of State corporateBody
employeeOf United States. Foreign Service corporateBody
alumnusOrAlumnaOf University of Michigan. corporateBody
Place Name Admin Code Country
Moscow 48 RU
District of Columbia DC US
Tokyo 40 JP
Bandon OR US
San Francisco CA US
Monterey CA US
Subject
Occupation
Ambassadors
Diplomats
Foreign service officers
Soldiers
Translator
Activity

Person

Birth 1951

Male

Americans

French,

Japanese,

Albanian,

Russian,

German,

English,

Chinese

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