[8][9] Owen also participated in negotiations with Iranian representatives in Algiers in late 1980 and early 1981 as a member of the team led by Deputy Secretary of State Warren Christopher.
[10][11][12] Owen played a role in drafting the Algiers Accords that led to the January 1981 release of the U.S. embassy personnel being held captive in Tehran.
[15] In 1995, then-Secretary of State Warren Christopher asked Owen to assist negotiator Richard Holbrooke in efforts to resolve conflicts arising from the Breakup of Yugoslavia.
As part of Holbrooke's delegation during negotiations with the combatants, Owen acted as a mediator and the draftsman of proposals that led to the Dayton Agreement.
[16][17][18] According to Holbrooke, after one occasion in which the "normally dignified" Owen expressed his frustration with the behavior of one Bosnian negotiator by slamming his fist against a wall, his American colleagues gave him the sobriquet "Mad Dog.