Richard Morningstar

Morningstar served in the Clinton Administration as special adviser to the president and secretary of state for assistance to the Former Soviet Union and then for Caspian Basin Energy Diplomacy. In the latter role he maximized coordination both within the executive branch and with other governments and international organizations, while promoting US policies on regional energy development and transportation. From 1999-2001, Morningstar was the US ambassador to the European Union. From 2009 -2012, he was special envoy for Eurasian energy followed by his service in Baku. For more than ten years, Morningstar led Costar Corporation, a manufacturer of medical laboratory products, as chairman and CEO. Under Morningstar’s leadership, Costar was listed by Forbes as one of the United States’ top 200 small companies. Morningstar has also acted as a visiting scholar and diplomat in residence at Stanford University, Herman Phleger visiting professor and then lecturer of law at Stanford Law School and was an adjunct lecturer at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. Ambassador Morningstar graduated from Harvard College with high honors and received a law degree from Stanford Law School.