Richard William Murphy (born July 29, 1929) was an American diplomat and career member of the foreign service.

Biography

Early life

Richard William Murphy was born on July 29, 1929, in Boston, Massachusetts. After graduating from Phillips Exeter Academy in 1947, he received BAs from Harvard University in 1951 and from Emmanuel College, University of Cambridge in 1953. From 1953 to 1955, he served in the U.S. Army.

Career

He started his career in the United States Foreign Service as Vice Consul in Salisbury, Rhodesia (1955–1958). From 1959 to 1971, he worked for the Middle Eastern Bureau. He was the United States ambassador to Mauritania from 1971 to 1974, to Syria from 1974 to 1978, to the Philippines from 1978 to 1981, and to Saudi Arabia from 1981 to 1983. He served as the United States Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs from 1983 to 1989. Murphey is often credited with brokering the Taif Agreement in 1990, which led to the end of the 15-year Lebanon war. Starting in the 1993, and until 2004, he served as senior fellow for the Middle East Council for Foreign Relations, and as chairman of the Foreign Student Service Council, the Middle East Institute, and Chatham House Foundation. He currently serves on the board of directors of UNRWA USA, a Washington–DC based 501c3 nonprofit which aims to educate the general American public about the situation of Palestine refugees and generate support for UNRWA's work. He was a two-time recipient of the State Department's Superior Honor Award, and a three-time recipient of the President's Distinguished Service Award. From 2003 to 2005 he was a Director of Middle East International, a London based bi-monthly magazine providing news and analysis of events in the Middle East.

Personal life

He was married to Anne Cook and has three children, and seven grandchildren.

Death

He passed away peacefully on November 22, 2024, surrounded by his family.