Wallace ‘Chip’ Gregson, Jr.
Currently the Senior Director, China and the Pacific, at the Center for the National Interest, and Senior Advisor, Avascent Global Advisors.
Former Assistant Secretary of Defense, Asian and Pacific Security Affairs.
The Honorable Wallace “Chip” Gregson was sworn in as the Assistant Secretary of Defense, Asian and Pacific Security Affairs May 13, 2009. From 2006 until assuming the duties of Assistant Secretary of Defense, Lieutenant General Gregson (USMC, Retired) was owner and president of WCG & Associates International, a foreign policy and military affairs consulting organization.
Previously General Gregson served as Chief Operating Officer for the United States Olympic Committee. From 2003 to 2005, he was Commanding General of Marine Corps Forces Pacific and Marine Corps Forces Central Command, where he led and managed over 70,000 Marines and Sailors in the Middle East, Afghanistan, East Africa, Asia and the United States. From 2001 to 2003 he served as Commanding General of all Marine Corps forces in Japan, where he was awarded the Japanese Order of the Rising Sun – Gold and Silver Star, the Korean Order of National Security Merit Gukseon Medal, and the Republic of China Order of the Resplendent Banner with Yellow Sash.
Just prior to his service in Japan he was Director of Asia-Pacific Policy in the Office of the Secretary of Defense from 1998 to 2000. He served in the Marine Corps since his graduation from the United States Naval Academy in 1968. A combat veteran of the Vietnam conflict, he earned the Bronze Star with Combat “V” device for valor and heroism, and was also awarded the Purple Heart.
His professional and business activities include extensive involvement with Japanese policy and commercial interests. He serves as Executive Advisor to major Japanese corporations, and serves as a Director of Peace Winds America, a major humanitarian organization partnered with Peace Winds Japan. He enjoys close contacts with Japanese in business, academic institutions, and government. He visits Tokyo regularly for business and consultations. In the past, he served as an Honorary Director of an Okinawa Prefecture non-profit organization supporting the creation of the Amicus School, an international school operating in support of the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology. He maintains many contacts in Okinawa Prefecture and visits there at least quarterly.
General Gregson is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. Additional board memberships include: the U.S. Naval Institute: The Japan America Society of Washington DC; and the Marine Corps University Foundation.
His civilian education includes a Bachelor’s degree from the U.S. Naval Academy, and Master’s degrees in Strategic Planning from the Naval War College and International Relations from Salve Regina College. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Public Service by the University of Maryland University College in Okinawa.