Nomination of Richard Noyes Viets To Be United States Ambassador to Jordan

The President today announced his intention to nominate Richard Noyes Viets, of Vermont, to be Ambassador to the Hashemitc Kingdom of Jordan. He would succeed Nicholas A. Veliotes, who has been named Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs.

Mr. Viets was with Bank of America in Los Angeles, Calif., in 1955 and, from 1960 to 1962, Mobil International Oil Co. in New York, N.Y.

He was with the International Communication Agency (formerly United States Information Agency) as Public Affairs Assistant from 1955 to 1957, and from 1957 to 1960, he was Assistant Exhibit Manager with the Department of Commerce. He came to the Department of State in 1962 as commercial officer in Tokyo and was commercial officer in Madras from 1965 to 1967. In New Delhi he was political and economic officer (1967-69) and special assistant to the Ambassador (1969-72). In the Department he was international relations officer from 1972 to 1973 and Director of the Executive Secretariat from 1973 to 1974. From 1974 to 1977, he was Deputy Chief of Mission in Bucharest and in Tel Aviv from 1977 to 1979. Since 1979 he has been Ambassador to the United Republic of Tanzania. He is fluent in Romanian and French.

Mr. Viets was born November 10, 1930, in Burlington, Vt. He received his A.B. in 1955 from the University of Vermont. He served in the U.S. Army from 1950 to 1952.