Gregory B. Starr (born February 3, 1953) is an American diplomat and the former Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security. He was previously the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Safety and Security. He was selected by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon on May 6, 2009. Prior to his appointment with the United Nations, Starr was the Director of the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), and the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary within Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS) from March 1, 2007. Starr also served as the acting Assistant Secretary of State for DS from October 2007 to July 2008. Starr became a Special Agent and joined the U.S. Foreign Service in 1980. His overseas assignments include Senior Regional Security Officer (RSO) at the U.S. Embassy to Israel (1997–2000), and Regional Security Officer positions in Tunisia, Senegal and Zaire (now Democratic Republic of the Congo). His awards include several Senior Foreign Service Performance and Superior and Meritorious Honor Awards. In January 2013 Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon announced the interim replacement for Mr. Starr. Mr. Starr's pending departure had been announced the previous August. On February 1, 2013 it was announced that Mr. Starr has again assumed the responsibility of Director of the Diplomatic Security Service and will also serve as the acting Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Diplomatic Security. On July 31, 2013, President Obama announced that he was formally nominating Mr. Starr for Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Diplomatic Security. On November 27, 2018, several international media reported that a secret UN-report, chaired by Mr. Starr, about the killing of UN specialists Zaida Catalán and Michael Sharp in Congo march 2017, buried evidence suggesting that Congolese authorities may have been involved in the murder. References External links Official bio by the U.S. State Department Official bio by the United Nations |- |- |- |- 1953 births George Washington University alumni Living people Under-Secretaries-General of the United Nations United States Assistant Secretaries of State United States Foreign Service personnel American officials of the United Nations