United States Ambassador to Iran - Nomination of William H. Sullivan

The President today announced that he will nominate William H. Sullivan, of Cranston, R.I., to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States to Iran. Sullivan is presently Ambassador to the Philippines.

He was born in Cranston, R.I., on October 12, 1922. He received a B.A. in 1942 from Brown University and an M.A. in 1947 from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1942 to 1946.

Sullivan entered the Foreign Service in 1947 and was assigned to Bangkok as Economic and Consular Officer. In 1949 he was a commercial officer in Calcutta. From 1950 to 1952, he was a political officer in Tokyo, and from 1952 to 1955 he was Political/Military Affairs Officer in Rome.

From 1955 to 1958, Sullivan served as political officer at The Hague. In 1958 he was appointed officer in charge of Burma Affairs. He served as a staff aide to the Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs in 1959 and 1960.

From 1960 to 1963, Sullivan was United Nations advisor in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. He served as Special Assistant to the Under Secretary for Political Affairs in 1963 and 1964, and as Special Assistant to the Secretary of State in 1964.

Sullivan was Ambassador to the Kingdom of Laos from 1964 to 1969. He served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs from 1969 until 1973, when he became Ambassador to the Philippines.