From November 1982 to July 1988, Chien served as the Representative (ambassador equivalent) of the
Coordination Council for North American Affairs (CCNAA) Office in the United States, ROC's
de facto embassy in
Washington, D.C. Mr. and Mrs. Chien arrived at their new post on January 7, 1963, and was greeted by the former Congressman & Mrs.
Walter Judd at the
Washington Dulles International Airport. Upon arriving at his new post, he "found the new assignment very tough, as there was a lack of trust on both sides," and morale at the office was low. A declassified
Central Intelligence Agency memo noted Chien's ability to cultivate relationships with key figures in the US government and private sector and described him as a tough and aggressive diplomat who is "willing to compromise on form in order to obtain a stronger substantive relationship." Due to the unique status of the ROC, as its representative in the United States, Chien once said: "establishing a long-term friendship requires working at building up good will" and that "all the things in Sino-American relations that are good for us can't be discussed, and the things that are bad are the ones that everyone sees." Shortly upon arriving at the United States, on January 12, 1983, Chien met with Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs
Paul Wolfowitz on Secretary
George Shultz's forthcoming trip to the mainland. Wolfowitz briefed Chien again on February 16 after the Secretary's visit. On February 18, only a month and a half after assuming his post, at the introduction of Senator
James A. McClure, Chien met with President Ronald Reagan at a
Conservative Political Action Conference reception. On May 19, at the AIT Washington headquarters located in
Arlington County, Virginia, Chien met with
National Security Advisor William P. Clark Jr., National Security Council's
Gaston J. Sigur Jr., and AIT's David Dean. Chien said that arms sales are essential to the confidence of Taiwan's public. Chien also referenced that Taiwan is willing to help the US assist the economic developments in the
Central America region and that joint projects with American funds would be undertaken by Taiwanese personnel and technical teams. On December 1, Mr. and Mrs. Chien were invited by Vice President
George H. W. Bush for a welcome dinner at the
Alibi Club, where they discussed their studies at Yale University, bilateral relations between the ROC and US, and the effects of high-level visits between the US and mainland China on Taiwan. 's
Katharine Graham to the historic
Twin Oaks Estate, September 11, 1986 During his tenure, Chien delivered a total of 224 speeches. Chien spoke at the state legislatures of
Arizona,
Pennsylvania, and
West Virginia, the
US Conference of Mayors, and think tanks such as but not limited to the
Council on Foreign Relations,
Atlantic Council, and the
World Affairs Council. He also toured prestigious universities and gave speeches at
Yale,
Cornell,
Michigan, and
Georgetown. In an October 1986 speech at
Harvard University titled "The Taiwan Experience Progress – Toward Democracy," Chien spoke about Taiwan's model of development, the processes involved in the success of Taiwan's economic growth, and the benefits of land reform. In a 1988 interview with the
Los Angeles Times's
James Mann, Chien said that he personally met with all 100 members of the
United States Senate and met with approximately 230 members of the
House of Representatives. In the same interview, he also added that "[a]ll the meetings (with executive-branch officials) have to be on neutral ground, such as restaurants, hotels and what-not," and "[i]n terms of frequency, it's much more frequent now than before 1979." Mann went on to say that "Fredrick Chien may not be an Ambassador, but his understanding of how Washington operated and his influence probably exceeded 98% of all ambassadors in Washington." When Chien was scheduled to leave his post in 1988, over 50 congressmen and senators gave farewell speeches on the floor and paid tribute to Chien's work as the ROC representative. An honor seldom enjoyed even by departing foreign ambassadors. His farewell reception on August 8 at the
Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill was attended by more than 3200 guests from all three branches of government, including but not limited to
Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Michael Armacost,
Attorney General Edwin Meese,
Secretary of Commerce William Verity Jr.,
Secretary of Agriculture Richard Lyng, 17 senators, 48 members of congress, and an associate justice of the
Supreme Court of the United States.
Twin Oaks restoration was restored during Chien's tenure When Chien arrived in Washington, D.C., in 1983,
Twin Oaks, ROC ambassador's former residence, required extensive repairs upon the transfer of the property back to the ROC Government from the Friends of Free China Association a few months prior. Chien and his wife supervised the repair and restoration of the 26-room English Georgian Renaissance-style mansion. The Chiens sourced
Chinese calligraphy and paintings through the Director of the
National Palace Museum and furniture from the
Veterans Affairs Council's associated businesses. Upon its completion, while the mission was no longer the representative's residence, it was used for cultural, economic, and social purposes. After being closed for two thousand plus days and a nine-months restoration, which cost US$500,000, Twin Oaks reopened on September 13, 1984, and held its first social event for
Howard University on the following day.
New office building office building on
Wisconsin Avenue,
Washington, D.C., was purchased and built during Chien's tenure as Representative to the US Early in Chien's tenure as the ROC Representative, he purchased the land of the current office building of
Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States (TECRO), back then known as CCNAA Office in the United States, on
Wisconsin Avenue in
Northwest, Washington, D.C. The original office building was located on the outskirts of Washington, D.C., on
River Road in
Bethesda, Maryland. The new 5-story building broke ground in January 1985 and was completed on November 25 of the following year. ==Chairman of the Council for Economic Planning and Development==