Morton Isaac Abramowitz

Early Life and Education

Morton Isaac Abramowitz was born on January 20, 1933, in Lakewood Township, New Jersey, to Mendel and Dora (Smith) Abramowitz, Jewish immigrants from Lithuania. Growing up in a modest family, he displayed academic promise early on. He earned a B.A. in history and economics from Stanford University in 1953 and an M.A. from Harvard University in 1955. After serving in the U.S. Army and Army Reserves from 1958 to 1961, he began his career in public service.

Early Career

Abramowitz joined the U.S. Department of Labor in 1956 as a management intern and later worked as a labor economist (1957–1958) while awaiting a State Department appointment. In 1959, he entered the U.S. Foreign Service, launching a diplomatic career. His initial assignments included consular-economic officer in Taipei, Taiwan (1960–1962), where he was known by his Mandarin name, Ai Mo-huei (艾莫惠). This posting is critical in the Operation Gladio timeline as it was during this time the CIA was working with Taiwan president Chiang Kai-shekin setting up the opium trafficking network via Taiwan. He also served as the economic officer in Hong Kong (1963–1966) which again was a key node in the trafficking and money laundering in southeast Asia.. Returning to Washington, D.C., in 1966, he served in various roles over the next seven years, including special assistant to Under Secretary Elliot Richardson.

Diplomatic Career

1973–1978: He served as political adviser to the Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Command (1973–1974) and deputy assistant secretary of defense for international affairs (1974–1978), focusing on Inter-American, East Asian, and Pacific affairs.

1978–1981: Appointed by President Jimmy Carter as U.S. Ambassador to Thailand, he served from August 9, 1978, to July 31, 1981. During this period, he played a pivotal role in addressing the Cambodian refugee crisis, persuading Thailand to accept refugees and coordinating U.S. relief efforts. His dynamic approach earned him praise as an “ambassador for the refugees.”

1983–1985: Named U.S. Ambassador to the Mutual and Balanced Force Reduction Negotiations in Vienna by President Ronald Reagan.

1985–1989: Reagan appointed him Director of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research (later Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research after a 1986 title change), a role he held from February 1, 1985, to May 19, 1989. In this capacity, he helped arrange the delivery of Stinger missiles to Afghan mujahidin in 1986, a significant Cold War operation. The was a CIA operation. This office within the State Department is the key conduit between the CIA and State. Eleanor Lansing Dulles held this job while her brothers John Foster Dulles and Allen Dulles were Secretary of State and CIA director respectively.

1989–1991: Under President George H. W. Bush, he served as U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, retiring in 1991 with the rank of Career Ambassador, the highest honor for a Foreign Service officer. Fethullah Gulen, who governs one of the world's most powerful Muslim Networks which was located in Turkey until it was found to be interfering and advocating the overthrow of the Turkish government. During the 1980's Gulen worked with the Turkish Gladio program, Grey Wolves, and the CIA overt operations against the Kurdish population. His primary contact for these activities was Abramowitz and this is prior to his being appointed as the Turkish ambassador, according to Paul Williams.

In a 2008 Federal court ruling Gulen was identified as a person of extraordinary ability in the field of education who merited permanent residency status in the United States. This ruling is odd since Gulen lacked a high school education, spoke no English, and had never even written an article or book on the subject of education. Even weirder, was the appearance of US officials in court to testify on behalf of Gulen. They included, former CIA officials, Graham Fuller, and George Fidas, along with former US ambassador to Turkey, Morton Abramowitz and Marc Grossman.

Post-Government Career

After retiring from the State Department, Abramowitz remained influential in international affairs:

1991–1997: He served as president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he established the Carnegie Moscow Center, mentored future leaders, and oversaw the construction of Carnegie’s Washington, D.C., headquarters. The Carnegie Endowment has acted as a funding source for the CIA operations around the world.

1995–Present: Co-founded the International Crisis Group (ICG) in 1995, inspired by a 1993 visit to Sarajevo during the Bosnian War. The ICG, conceived with Mark Malloch-Brown and Fred Cuny, became a leading organization for conflict prevention and resolution. Abramowitz served as acting president in 1997–1998 and remained a board member.

The ICG receives significant funding from Western governments, with 43% of its 2019 budget ($30 million total) from state sources, including the U.S., Australia, and the UAE. It also receives grants from foundations like the Open Society Foundations ($20 million in 2022) and the Charles Koch Institute ($2.4 million in 2021).

A 2014 Third World Quarterly special issue critiqued ICG’s role in “knowledge production” about conflicts, noting its influence on policymakers and potential to “manufacture” crises. Tom Hazeldine’s 2010 New Left Review article described ICG as complicit in a “North Atlantic Counsel,” implying alignment with NATO and U.S. interests

Post-1997: As a senior fellow at The Century Foundation, he continued to influence policy. He served on the boards of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) for nine years, earning its Democracy Service Medal in 2007, and the International Rescue Committee, reflecting his commitment to humanitarian causes. He also co-chaired the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Turkey Initiative.

The Century Foundation was founded in 1919 by Edward A. Filene as the Cooperative League (later renamed TCF), TCF has a progressive legacy, focusing on economic equity, education, and foreign policy. Its leadership has included figures like Adolf A. Berle Jr. (OSS officer and former board member), a New Deal-era official involved in intelligence during World War II, and Clark Kerr (former trustee), who was linked to CIA-funded programs via the University of California’s oversight of Los Alamos. The presence of former government officials like Michael Morell (former acting CIA director and TCF senior fellow since 2013). TCF’s funding comes from endowments, individual donors, and grants from progressive foundations like the Open Society Foundations and the Carnegie Corporation. It does not disclose detailed donor lists, but its 2019 revenue was approximately $11 million. TCF’s foreign policy work, including reports on U.S.-China relations and Middle East policy, often engages with U.S. government priorities.

His tenure at NED, which serves as a CIA front, is also indicative of his playing a role in the destabilization, Strategy of Tension and Operation Gladio regime change activities.

Publications and Thought Leadership Abramowitz authored and co-authored several influential works, including Remaking China Policy (1971, with Richard Harris Moorsteen), Moving the Glacier: The Two Koreas and the Powers (1971), Testing North Korea: The Next Stage in U.S. and ROK Policy (2001), and Chasing the Sun: Rethinking East Asian Policy (2006, with Stephen Bosworth). He edited The United States and Turkey: Allies in Need (2003) and Turkey’s Transformation and American Policy (2000), shaping U.S. foreign policy discourse. He serves as an author generating the necessary 'research' to justify the actions of international syndicate.

Awards and Honors

Career Ambassador rank (1990)

Director General’s Cup of the Foreign Service (1995)

Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1995)

Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy, American Foreign Service Association (2006)

Democracy Service Medal, National Endowment for Democracy (2007)

Joseph C. Wilson Award for International Service, University of Rochester

Personal Life

In 1959, Abramowitz married Sheppie Glass, sister of composer Philip Glass. Sheppie, a lifelong advocate for refugees through the International Rescue Committee and KIND (Kids in Need of Defense), died in April 2024. They had two children: Michael, a former Washington Post journalist and president of Freedom House since 2017, who also heads the Committee on Conscience at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum; and Rachel, a former Los Angeles Times entertainment reporter turned screenwriter, married to Joshua Goldin.

It's important to note that the destabilization and coups orchestrated by the CIA and their counterparts are the cause of the refugees. The spouses of those involved garner accolades as advocates of the 'refugees' that the policies they advocate generate. The refugees are trafficked to designations throughout the west when there would not have been a need to relocate except their countries were destroyed by chaos agents posing as intelligence agents.

Death and Legacy

Abramowitz died at his home in Washington, D.C., on November 29, 2024, at age 91. His son, Michael, confirmed his death.