Christian Castro

At the Department of State, Mr. Castro served as the East Asia Bureau’s first-ever Senior Advisor for Cyber Policy, charged with promoting U.S. cyber policy goals in the Indo Pacific, one of the world’s fastest-growing information and communications technology markets. He also launched and led the State Department’s first office devoted exclusively to U.S. engagement with the ten-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). As Taiwan Coordination Office Director, Mr. Castro leveraged Taiwan’s unique role as a top-ten U.S. trading partner, vital technology hub, key regional security cornerstone and democratic powerhouse. During his tenure as Chief of the American Institute in Taiwan’s Kaohsiung Office (Consulate equivalent), Mr. Castro and his team energized U.S. engagement with southern Taiwan, setting post records for U.S. export successes for three consecutive years. In other assignments, Mr. Castro also served as Special Assistant to Deputy Secretary Richard Armitage and later to Deputy Secretary Robert Zoellick.

Mr. Castro graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and was awarded Georgetown’s Sun Yat-sen China Studies Fellowship for graduate studies at National Chengchi University in Taipei, Taiwan. He received a Master’s Degree in National Security Studies at the National War College, earning Distinguished Graduate Honors.