Tom Vraalsen

{{Short description|Norwegian politician (1936–2021)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}}

{{Infobox officeholder

| office= Norwegian Ambassador to the United States

| term_start= 2 October 1996

| term_end= 17 April 2001

| primeminister= Gro Harlem Brundtland
Thorbjørn Jagland
Kjell Magne Bondevik
Jens Stoltenberg

| predecessor= Kjeld Vibe

| successor= Knut Vollebæk

| office2= Norwegian Ambassador to the United Kingdom

| term_start2=18 February 1994

| term_end2= 1 October 1996

| primeminister2= Gro Harlem Brundtland

| predecessor2= Kjell Eliassen

| successor2= Kjell Colding

| office3= Norwegian Permanent Representative to the United Nations

| term_start3= 12 March 1982

| term_end3= 16 October 1989

| primeminister3= Kåre Willoch
Gro Harlem Brundtland

| predecessor3= Ole Ålgård

| successor3= Thorvald Stoltenberg

| office4= Minister of International Development

| term_start4= 16 October 1989

| term_end4= 3 November 1990

| primeminister4= Jan P. Syse

| predecessor4= Kirsti Kolle Grøndahl

| successor4= Grete Faremo

| office5= Minister of Nordic Cooperation

| term_start5= 16 October 1989

| term_end5= 3 November 1990

| primeminister5= Jan P. Syse

| predecessor5= Bjarne Mørk-Eidem

| successor5= Kjell Borgen

| birth_name= Tom Eric Vraalsen

| birth_date= {{birth date|1936|1|26|df=y}}

| birth_place= Oslo, Norway

| death_date= {{death date and age|2021|9|13|1936|1|26|df=y}}

| death_place=

| spouse= Vibecke Vraalsen

| children= 5

| party= Centre

}}

Tom Eric Vraalsen (26 January 1936 – 13 September 2021) was a Norwegian ambassador and politician for the Centre Party. He served as the Norwegian Minister of International Development from 1989 to 1990, as well as Minister of Nordic Cooperation.

He received a master's degree in economics from the University of Århus, Denmark, before joining the Norwegian Foreign Service in 1960. He was the Norwegian Ambassador to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from 1994 to 1996, to the United States of America from 1996 to 2001 and to Finland from 2001 to 2003.{{cite web|url=http://www.stortinget.no/no/Representanter-og-komiteer/Representantene/Representantfordeling/Representant/?perid=TOVR|title=Vraalsen, Tom Eric ( 1936- )|publisher=Stortinget.no|language=Norwegian|accessdate=8 January 2010}} He received an Honorary Doctorate Degree from the Augustana College Commencement in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on 21 May 2000.[http://www.norway.org/News/archive/2000/200002vraalsen.htm Honorary degree to Ambassador Vraalsen]

Vraalsen was also the Permanent Representative & Ambassador of Norway to the United Nations from 1982 to 1989. From 1998 to 2004, he held the position of the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Humanitarian affairs for the Sudan. He is the author of numerous papers an articles on African socio-economic development issues and on conflict prevention and resolution, including two books on the UN, The UN - Dream and Reality (1984) and UN in Focus (1975), which he co-authored.

He was also chairman of Task Force for International Cooperation on Holocaust Education, Remembrance, and Research under the Norwegian Chairmanship 2009-2010.'Norwegian Chairmanship of the Holocaust Task Force', www.blog.norway.com {{cite web |url=http://blog.norway.com/2009/03/30/norwegian-chairmanship-of-the-holocaust-task-force/ |title=Norwegian Chairmanship of the Holocaust Task Force « Norway.com |accessdate=7 September 2009 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812155850/http://blog.norway.com/2009/03/30/norwegian-chairmanship-of-the-holocaust-task-force/ |archivedate=12 August 2011 }}

He was married and has five children.