THE WHITE HOUSE

                     Office of the Press Secretary
                         (Roseville, Michigan)
________________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release                                     April 16, 1999

                 PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES DONALD W. KEYSER
               FOR RANK OF AMBASSADOR AS SPECIAL NEGOTIATOR 
                 FOR NAGORNO-KARABAKH AND NEW INDEPENDENT 
                         STATES REGIONAL CONFLICTS

The President announced today his intent to nominate Donald W. Keyser for the Rank of Ambassador as Special Negotiator for Nagorno-Karabakh and New Independent States Regional Conflicts.

Mr. Donald Keyser, of Fairfax Station, Virginia, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counselor, joined the Foreign Service in 1972. Since August 1998 he has been serving as Special Negotiator for Nagorno-Karabakh and New Independent States Regional Conflicts. His two immediately preceding assignments were as Senior Inspector, Office of Inspector General, and as Office Director in the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. Previously, Mr. Keyser's career has focused sharply on East Asia policy analysis, formulation and management. He served three times at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing (l976-78, 1989-83, 1989-92), and three times, including as director (1993-95), in State's Office of Chinese and Mongolian Affairs. He served twice at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo (1979-81), 1985-88), and chaired studies of Japanese policy issues while serving in Washington during 1992-93. As a participant in the Department's Pearson Program, Mr. Keyser was special advisor to Hawaii Governor Ariyoshi from 1981-82.

Mr. Keyser was born in Baltimore, Maryland on July 17, 1943. Mr. Keyser received his B.A., Highest Honors, from the University of Maryland in 1965. He subsequently attended the Stanford Inter-University Center in Taiwan (1968-70), and completed all PhD requirements excluding the dissertation at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. (1965-66 and 1970-72). He graduated from the National War College in the class of 1989. He speaks and reads Chinese fluently.

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