Michele Kelemen
Michele Kelemen has been with NPR for two decades, starting as NPR's Moscow bureau chief and now covering the State Department and Washington's diplomatic corps. Her reports can be heard on all NPR News programs, including Morning Edition and All Things Considered.
As Diplomatic Correspondent, Kelemen has traveled with Secretaries of State from Colin Powell to Mike Pompeo and everyone in between. She reports on the Trump administration's "America First" foreign policy and before that the Obama and Bush administration's diplomatic agendas. She was part of the NPR team that won the 2007 Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia University Award for coverage of the war in Iraq.
As NPR's Moscow bureau chief, Kelemen chronicled the end of the Yeltsin era and Vladimir Putin's consolidation of power. She recounted the terrible toll of the latest war in Chechnya, while also reporting on a lighter side of Russia, with stories about modern day Russian literature and sports.
Kelemen came to NPR in September 1998, after eight years working for the Voice of America. There, she learned the ropes as a news writer, newscaster and show host.
Michele earned her Bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master's degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Russian and East European Affairs and International Economics.
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Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan has his Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday to become the next U.S. ambassador to Russia. He may face some tough questions on Ukraine.
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The impeachment investigation has led to a growing number of public servants looking for lawyers as they try to abide by conflicting instructions from the White House and Congress.
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In written testimony to Congress, Taylor said he "became increasingly concerned" about informal policymaking, driven by Rudy Giuliani, that diverged from official U.S. policy on Ukraine.
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President Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton reportedly was trying to caution others about Rudy Giuliani's efforts in Ukraine. Giuliani is Trump's personal attorney.
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Volker, who was named in a whistleblower complaint about President Trump's contact with Ukraine, resigned as U.S. special envoy to the country last week and is being deposed on Thursday.
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Diplomatic trade groups are urging Americans to respect diplomats' "non-partisan, non-political" work. This comes as the former ambassador to Ukraine is being pilloried by the Trump administration.
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The U.S. is trying to use the United Nations General Assembly to build up international pressure on Iran as it points blame at Iran for a recent attack in Saudi Arabia. Iran denies the accusation.
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President Trump wants Russia back in the group of leading democracies — the G-7. But members say Russia hasn't earned its return to the group. Several senators have written to Trump to oppose him.
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A judge in Gibraltar has ordered the release of an Iranian oil tanker despite a last minute appeal by the Trump administration.
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The wife of an American citizen being held in an Iranian prison is calling on the Trump administration to do more to free her husband.
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The Trump administration has imposed sweeping new sanctions on Venezuela, warning that anyone who deals with Nicolás Maduro's government could be punished too.
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The Trump administration is seeking to phase out the main program for Palestinian refugees. But other countries are seeking to make up the money the U.S. has pulled with a conference.