Former Consuls General

Michael Klosson

Former Consul General Michael Klosson

Mr. Michael Klosson, a career Foreign Service officer with 26 years of experience in East Asia, Europe and senior State Department positions, took up his post as U.S. Consul General for Hong Kong and Macau in August, 1999.

For Mr. Klosson, this assignment meant returning to the city where he lived 30 years ago. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Mr. Klosson lived in Hong Kong and taught English and modern Chinese history at Hong Kong Baptist College, 1971-72.

Mr. Klosson's Foreign Service career includes assignments involving both Asia and Europe. From 1975-81, he served in the State Department's Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs in Washington; in Taipei; and in the Department's Office of Japanese Affairs. From 1981-83, Mr. Klosson was a Special Assistant to the Secretary of State, working for both Secretary Alexander Haig and Secretary George Shultz. Mr. Klosson then spent nine months as a State Department Pearson Fellow working on the staff of United States Senator Edward Kennedy.

From 1984-90, Mr. Klosson served as Deputy Director of the Office of European Security and Political Affairs, and as Director of the Secretariat Staff in the Office of the Secretary of State. From 1990-96, he served as Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargéd'Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden, and at the U.S. Embassy in The Hague, the Netherlands.

His most recent assignment was as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs, 1996 - 1999. He worked with Congress on regional political issues, including China, Kosovo, Bosnia, North Korea and Haiti, as well as a range of economic and management issues.

Mr. Klosson was born August 22, 1949, in Washington, D.C. A member of the honor society of Phi Beta Kappa, he graduated magna cum laude from Hamilton College (B.A. 1971) and Princeton University (M.P.A. 1974 and M.A. 1975). He was awarded a Herbert H. Lehman Fellowship, a Winston Churchill Fellowship and six Department of State Superior Honor Awards. He has studied Chinese (Mandarin), Swedish, and French. His wife, Boni, recently retired from the Foreign Service. They have two daughters, Emily and Karen.