John F. Tefft holds the Distinguished Chair in Diplomacy and Security at RAND and is a retired United States diplomat. He was a career Foreign Service officer for more than 45 years, completing his service as the U.S. ambassador to the Russian Federation. He earlier served as the U.S. ambassador to Lithuania, ambassador to Georgia, and ambassador to Ukraine. He also worked as the deputy assistant secretary of State for European and Eurasian affairs, responsible for U.S. relations with Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and Moldova.
Tefft originally retired from the Foreign Service and served as executive director of RAND's U.S.-Russia Business Leaders Forum until his recall to duty and confirmation as U.S. Ambassador to the Russian Federation. Among the awards Tefft has received are the Secretary of State's Distinguished Service Award, the State Department's Distinguished Honor Award, the Deputy Chief of Mission of the Year Award for his service in Moscow, and the Diplomacy for Human Rights Award. He received two Presidential Meritorious Service Awards and the American Foreign Service Association's Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy award.
Tefft holds an M.A. in history from Georgetown University and a B.A. in history from Marquette University.
M.A. in history, Georgetown University; B.A. in history, Marquette University
