James A. Kelly is Chairman of the Board and President Emeritus of Pacific Forum, as well as a former assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs. President George W. Bush nominated him on April 3, 2001; he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on April 26, 2001 and sworn in on May 1, 2001. From 1994 to 2001, Mr. Kelly was president of Pacific Forum CSIS. From 1989 to 1994, Mr. Kelly was president of EAP Associates, Inc., of Honolulu, which provided international business consulting services with an Asia/Pacific focus to private clients. Earlier, he served at the White House as special assistant for national security affairs to President Ronald Reagan and as senior director for Asian affairs for the National Security Council from 1986 to 1989 under Presidents Reagan and George H.W. Bush. From 1983 to 1986, Mr. Kelly was at the Pentagon as deputy assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs (East Asia and Pacific). He earned an M.B.A. from the Harvard School of Business Administration 1968. He is also a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy (B.S., 1959) and the National War College (1977). He served in the U.S. Navy from 1959 to 1982, concluding his active duty as a captain in the Supply Corps.
