Richard Charles Albert Holbrooke (April 24, 1941 – December 13, 2010) was an American diplomat and author. He was the only person to have held the position of Assistant Secretary of State for two different regions of the world (Asia from 1977 to 1981 and Europe from 1994 to 1996).
From 1993 to 1994, he was U.S. Ambassador to Germany.
He, together with former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt, brokered a peace agreement among the warring factions in Bosnia leading to the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords. From 1999 to 2001, Holbrooke served as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations.