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Trump Considering Sullivan as Next US Envoy to Russia

Cindy Saine

   WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump confirms that Deputy Secretary
   of State John Sullivan "could very well be" his choice to be the next
   U.S. Ambassador to Russia. Trump answered a question from reporters at
   the White House Tuesday, after media reports said he intends to
   nominate Sullivan to be one of the most important and challenging U.S.
   ambassador positions.

   Earlier this month, U.S. Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman submitted a
   letter of resignation after two years in his post, calling it a
   "historically difficult period in bilateral relations." Huntsman leaves
   the job Oct. 3.

   Sullivan has been Deputy Secretary of State since May 2017, after the
   Senate confirmed him by a resounding vote of 94-6. He briefly led the
   State Department in the period between former Secretary of State Rex
   Tillerson's departure in March 2018 and Mike Pompeo's swearing-in April
   2018. Sullivan is a lawyer with a long history of federal service,
   dating back to 1991. He was also the chairman of the U.S.-Iraq Business
   Dialogue during the Obama administration.

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