Adela Raz

Ambassador Adela Raz is the director of the Afghanistan Policy Lab at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs and a visiting fellow at Hudson Institute. Her work at Hudson analyzes Afghanistan with a focus on women’s rights under Taliban rule, the security situation, and China’s growing involvement in the country.

Ambassador Raz served as the last ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United States. Prior to that Amb. Raz served as the first female Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Afghanistan to the United Nations. At the UN, Amb. Raz was the Vice President of the seventy-fifth session of the General Assembly, and was also appointed by the President of the UN General Assembly to serve as the co-coordinator on COVID-19-related initiatives. 

Before her arrival at the UN, Amb. Raz was the Deputy Foreign Minister in Afghanistan. At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, she managed the regional and economic cooperation portfolios and led the two major platforms: the Regional Economic Cooperation Conferences on Afghanistan and the Heart of Asia – Istanbul Process. She helped to manage and coordinate the Brussels (2016) and Geneva (2018) Donor Conferences on Afghanistan and led the negotiations on the outcome documents. 

In 2013, she served as the first female Deputy Spokesperson and Director of Communications for President Hamid Karzai.

She began her career with the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and continued to work in a variety of positions at various international development organizations in the US and Afghanistan.

Amb. Raz holds a master of arts in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University, and a bachelor of arts in international relations, political science, and economics from Simmons University in Boston. She also earned a certificate in international development from the Fletcher School.