Jump to content

Armand Cucciniello

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Force2006 (talk | contribs) at 18:48, 11 February 2016 (Removed photo.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

  • Comment: Replace information table with standard infobox. Remove references to his own papers. Robert McClenon (talk) 22:55, 8 February 2016 (UTC)
Armand Cucciniello III
File:ArmandCucciniello1.jpeg
Cucciniello has appeared on CNN, commenting on global affairs.
Born
Armand Victor Cucciniello III

7 December 1979
New Jersey, U.S.A.
NationalityAmerican
Alma materBoston University; Syracuse University; University of California, Berkeley
Occupation(s)Public Relations executive, Writer, Political and Global Affairs commentator.
Known forPR executive, Writer, News Commentor

Armand Cucciniello III (b. 7 December 1979; also known as Armand Cucciniello, Armand V. Cucciniello, Armand V. Cucciniello III) is a public relations and communications executive, writer, political and international affairs commentator; a former American diplomat and journalist.[1] He has appeared on CNN, National Public Radio (NPR), and other news media outlets.[2] His work has been used and cited by think-tanks,[3] various scholars and authors,[4][5][6][7] the U.S. government, and the U.S. military.[8][9] Cucciniello was a spokesperson for the U.S. embassy in Baghdad from 2006 until 2010.

Education

Cucciniello is a graduate of Boston University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2002.[10] He subsequently attended The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University where he earned a Master of Arts degree (2004) and was a Foreign Language and Area Studies National Resource Fellow.[11][12] [13]

Cucciniello graduated from Seton Hall Preparatory School in 1998.[14][15]

Career and Professional Life

Subsequent to his time in Boston, he worked for the Center For Strategic and International Studies[16] and The Rendon Group, Inc., a global public relations and strategic communications firm based in Washington, D.C.

India

Cucciniello lived in India twice: First in 2001 as a student in Mysore at the world-renowned Dhvanyaloka Centre For Indian Studies;[17] and subsequently working as a reporter for Dow Jones Newswires in New Delhi and Mumbai.[13]

While in Mysore, Cucciniello was a student of the renowned Indian archaeologist and epigraphist M.S. Nagaraja Rao; and scholar H.V. Nagaraja Rao, a world authority on Sanskrit.[18] Aside from studying archaeology, South Asian languages, and contemporary political science Cucciniello conducted primary research in southern India on the then-nascent and budding information technology (IT) industry[19], which had been mostly forming in and around nearby Bangalore and Hyderabad. Cucciniello's work, conducted at an exceptionally young age, was noticed by leading Indian journalist and head of Dow Jones India Mr. Suman Dubey - a very close friend of the late Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and his wife, the Italian-born politician Sonia Gandhi.[20]

In 2003 Dubey invited Cucciniello to come work in New Delhi as a reporter for the newswire to cover IT, among other topics. From Mumbai, Cucciniello was one of the first to report internationally on India as a thriving, global hub for what became known as business processing outsourcing, or simply "outsourcing."[21] He also reported on political affairs,[22] macroeconomics,[23][24][25][26] agriculture,[27] and the textile industry.[28]

Iraq

In 2006 Cucciniello moved to Baghdad, Iraq to work for Multi-National Force-Iraq (MNF-I). Shortly thereafter he was hired by the U.S. Department of State to work in the Public Affairs Section at the U.S. embassy, located in the former Republican Palace (Arabic: القصر الجمهوري al-Qaṣr al-Ǧumhūriy) of Saddam Hussein.[1][13] As such Cucciniello was made a non-career U.S. diplomat.[10] He served as a spokesman for the U.S. embassy and has been widely quoted in news media outlets like The New York Times, Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, CBS News, NBC, CNN, McClatchy Newspapers, Sky News, The Guardian, The Telegraph, and many others.[29][30][31][32][33][34][35] He was also a writer for the U.S. Department of State.[36][37][38][39]

Some of Cucciniello's experiences in Iraq were documented in the 2007 book Baghdad: Journal of A Reporter (French: Bagdad, Journal d'un Reporter) by the AFP reporter Patrick Fort, and he was a contributor to many titles documenting and covering the war.[40]

While in Iraq Cucciniello befriended Andrea Parhamovich, a National Democratic Institute employee killed in January 17, 2007 in Baghdad when her convoy was ambushed as she was returning from teaching a class on democracy to Iraqis. Parhamovich was the subject of the book I Lost My Love in Baghdad: A Modern War Story, written by her fiancé and Newsweek reporter Michael Hastings.[41] Cucciniello was also a good friend of Hastings, who died on June 18, 2013 in an automobile crash in Los Angeles, California.[42]

Saddam Hussein and The Iraqi High Tribunal

Cucciniello was responsible for overseeing news media and logistical operations at the Iraqi High Tribunal (IHT), a court established under Iraqi law to try Iraqis or residents accused of genocide, war crimes, and other crimes against humanity, or other serious crimes committed by Saddam Hussein and his Ba'ath Party regime.[43][44] As such, Cucciniello was one of the few Americans to witness and be present at the trial of Saddam Hussein; and other Ba'ath Party officials and top-tier henchmen of Hussein like Ali Hassan "Chemical Ali" Al-Majid, Tarik Aziz, (Foreign Minister) Sultan Hashim Ahmad al-Taih (Minister of Defence), Hussein Rashid Moal-Takriti.[45][46]

Camp Ashraf and the Mojahedin-e-Khal (MEK)

In January 2009 Cucciniello was one of the few American diplomats to have ever visited Camp Ashraf.[47] The camp was the former headquarters of the exiled Iranian group known as the People's Mojahedin of Iran (PMOI) or the Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK) (Persian: سازمان مجاهدين خلق ايران‎‎ Sāzmān-e mojāhedin-e khalq-e irān), an Iranian opposition movement in exile, founded in 1965, that actively and has sometimes violently advocated for the overthrow of the Islamic Republic of Iran. There Cucciniello met Mehdi Baraie, a senior official of the PMOI who had signed the ceasefire and mutual understanding agreement with US forces in April 2003.[48] At the time, in January 2009, tensions within the camp were high as the Iraqi government had assumed responsibility for all residents on January 1 under the terms of a U.S.-Iraq security agreement. Residents were fearful of being left at the mercy of the new Iraqi government, which had been hostile to the MEK and the camp residents.[49]

Pakistan

In Pakistan Cucciniello managed a counternarcotics and counter-narcoterrorism project for the U.S. Department of Defense through the Office of Defense Representative - Pakistan (ODRP).[50]


References

  1. ^ a b "NJ resident in Iraq war zone-njmonthly.com". New Jersey Monthly. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  2. ^ 2015-03-19 CNN New Day, 2015-03-23, retrieved 2016-01-20
  3. ^ "India and Israel Move Closer Together - CIAO". ciaonet.org. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  4. ^ Kemp, Geoffrey (2012-01-01). The East Moves West: India, China, and Asia's Growing Presence in the Middle East. Brookings Institution Press. ISBN 0815724071.
  5. ^ Herberg, Mikkal, ed. (2014). Energy Security and the Asia-Pacific. U.S.: The National Bureau of Asian Research. p. 260. ISBN 978-1-939131-33-1.
  6. ^ Kumaraswamy, P. R. (2010-07-30). India's Israel Policy. Columbia University Press. ISBN 9780231525480.
  7. ^ "INDIA'S POSITION IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AT THE TURN OF THE CENTURY - Acta Asiatica Varsoviensia - Volume 18 (2005) - CEJSH - Yadda". cejsh.icm.edu.pl. p. 10. Retrieved 2016-01-28.
  8. ^ Caudill, Shannon; Packard, Anthony; Tembreull, Raymund; et al. (1 April 2001). "Defending the Joint Force" (PDF). Air and Space Power Journal. Retrieved 20 January 2016. {{cite web}}: Explicit use of et al. in: |last= (help)
  9. ^ Singh, Manjeet (2005). "Deducing India's Grand Strategy of Regional Hegemony From Historical and Conceptual Perspectives" (PDF). Singapore: Nanyang Technological University. pp. 53, 58. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  10. ^ a b Rothman, Evan (11 November 2008). "Our Man in Iraq". New Jersey Monthly. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
  11. ^ Kurien, Prema. "Curriculum Vitae" (PDF). Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  12. ^ "The South Asia Center News" (PDF). Syracuse University. 2003. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  13. ^ a b c Luongo, Michael (2010). "Ambassador" (PDF). www.niaf.org. Vol 22 No 1. The National Italian American Foundation. Retrieved 18 January 2016.
  14. ^ "Alumni - Directory - Seton Hall Preparatory School". www.shp.org. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  15. ^ "1996 Seton Hall Preparatory High School Yearbook". www.classmates.com. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  16. ^ "South Asia Monitor: India and Israel Move Closer Together - October 1, 2003 | Center for Strategic and International Studies". csis.org. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  17. ^ "Dhvanyaloka Centre for Indian Studies - Mysore". www.dcismysore.org. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  18. ^ "H. V. Nagaraja Rao | The Institute for Advanced Studies". www.as.huji.ac.il. Retrieved 2016-01-19.
  19. ^ Rao, ed. (2003). "India and Information Technology". Prajñāvāhini: Journal of Dhvanyaloka Centre for Indian Studies. 1 (1 ed.). India: Dhvanyaloka Centre for Indian Studies: 82–101.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  20. ^ "The Hindu : Dow Jones' pact with Times of India group". www.thehindu.com. Retrieved 2016-01-19.
  21. ^ Prakash, Amit, ed. (23 July 2003). "India's Outsourcing Indus To Grow Despite Clamor In US". Mumbai, India: Dow Jones International News.
  22. ^ Paris, Costa, ed. (16 June 2003). "India Privatizations Run Into Election Hurdle". New Delhi: Dow Jones International News. Dow Jones Newswires.
  23. ^ "India Monsoon Expected To Arrive June 8-10 - Met Office". New Delhi: Dow Jones International News. Dow Jones Newswires. 3 June 2003.
  24. ^ "India Govt Unlikely To Meet Budget Target For FY2003-04". New Delhi: Dow Jones International News. Dow Jones Newswires. 4 June 2003.
  25. ^ "India Met Office: Monsoon Gathers Steam Off Southern Coast". New Delhi: Dow Jones International News. Dow Jones Newswires. 6 June 2003.
  26. ^ Lane, Karen, ed. (9 June 2003). "Late Monsoon Arrival May Mean One Week Delay Across India". Dow Jones International News. Dow Jones Newswires – via Highbeam Business.
  27. ^ "Ag Output Gains To Boost India Last FY 4Q GDP". Dow Jones International News. 30 June 2003.
  28. ^ "Free Trade To Hurt Small Indian Textile Cos". New Delhi: Dow Jones International News. Dow Jones Newswires. 4 July 2003 – via Daily Times (Pakistan).
  29. ^ Glanz, James (2007-08-21). "15 Hussein Aides on Trial in Baghdad". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  30. ^ "Saddam lawyers told to pick up his effects". www.freerepublic.com. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  31. ^ "Iraqi government distanced itself from U.S. accusations towards Iran". Global Research. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  32. ^ "Reaction to Al-Maliki". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  33. ^ "Obama in Iraq for talks with US, Iraqi leaders". NBC New York. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  34. ^ "Obama's Iraq Fact-Finding Mission". Sky News. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  35. ^ Baghdad, By Damien McElroy in. "Barack Obama calls for plans to withdraw troops from Iraq to Afghanistan". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  36. ^ "Iraq Proves Fertile Ground For Rule of Law Programs" (PDF). U.S. Embassy Baghdad, Iraq. 18 March 2008. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  37. ^ "Iraqi National Symphony Orchestra Performs In Baghdad" (PDF). U.S. Embassy Baghdad, Iraq. 26 July 2008. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  38. ^ "U.S. Sports Academy Honors Iraqi Soccer Team With Award" (PDF). U.S. Embassy Baghdad, Iraq. 15 May 2008. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  39. ^ "Iraq Officials Begin New Year with Vow to Battle Corruption | IIP Digital". iipdigital.usembassy.gov. 15 January 2008. Retrieved 2016-01-28.
  40. ^ Fort, Patrick (2007). Bagdad : Journal d'un reporter (in French). France: Des Idées & des Hommes. ISBN 2353690270.
  41. ^ Hastings, Michael (2008-01-01). I Lost My Love in Baghdad: A Modern War Story. Melbourne Univ. Publishing. ISBN 9780522854930.
  42. ^ Hastings, Michael (2008-04-08). I Lost My Love in Baghdad: A Modern War Story. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781416561163.
  43. ^ "Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal". Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
  44. ^ "Iraqi Special Tribunal to Try Crimes Against Humanity". www.hrcr.org. Retrieved 2016-01-19.
  45. ^ Glanz, James (2007-08-21). "15 Hussein Aides on Trial in Baghdad". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  46. ^ "Saddam's Time Running Out". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2016-01-21.
  47. ^ "Fighting To Stay In Iraq". FOX News. FOX News. 12 January 2009. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  48. ^ "Interview with a veteran official of the Iranian Mojahedin". www.iranfocus.com. Retrieved 2016-01-22.
  49. ^ "Iranian Militant MeK Group Losing Fight to Stay in Iraq | Fox News". Fox News. 2009-01-12. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  50. ^ "Illegal Immigration Is Not the Only Problem—Visas Are Too". TIME.com. Retrieved 2016-01-28.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Armand_Cucciniello&oldid=704458312"