Juan Carlos Pinzón

Juan Carlos Pinzón is currently a visiting professor at Princeton University. He was previously Colombia’s minister of defense and ambassador to the United States on two occasions. He served as ambassador to the United States between 2021 and 2022, celebrating 200 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries and between 2015 and 2017 strengthening the bilateral relationship. Previously, during 2018 and 2021 he was president of ProBogotá, a private non-profit entity for the promotion of public policies and long-term strategic projects for Colombia’s capital region. During the period from 2011 to 2015, he served as Colombia’s youngest minister of defense at a critical moment in the country’s history.

In addition to these positions, he has also held other positions such as chief of staff to the president of Colombia from 2010 to 2011, vice minister of defense from 2006 to 2009, senior advisor to the executive director of the World Bank from 2004 to 2006, vice president of the Colombian Banking Association from 2003 to 2004, and chief of staff of the Ministry of Finance from 2000 to 2002. In the 2018 national elections, he served as presidential and vice-presidential candidate.

In addition, Juan Carlos Pinzón is an economist from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, with a master’s degree from the same institution, and holds two additional master’s degrees: one in public policy from Princeton University and another Honoris Causa in National Security and Defense from the Colombian War College. Pinzón has also taken advanced courses in strategic studies at Johns Hopkins University, science and technology policy at Harvard University, and smart cities at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.

Finally, he has received several awards and decorations such as the Grand Cross of the Order of Boyacá and the Distinguished Public Service Medal from the US Department of Defense.

Pinzón joined the Dialogue as a Member in 2024.