THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

             PRESIDENT ANNOUNCES HIS INTENTION TO NOMINATE 
           GABRIEL GUERRA-MONDRAGON TO BE AMBASSADOR TO CHILE

President Clinton today announced his intention to nominate Gabriel Guerra-Mondragon, of San Juan, Puerto Rico, and a resident of Washington, D.C., to be Ambassador to the Republic of Chile.

Mr. Guerra-Mondragon, a former Foreign Service Officer for ten years, began his professional career in Washington, D.C., as a staff attorney in the U. S. Civil Rights Commission in 1968. After serving in that position for three years, he became Deputy Administrator of the office of the Governor of Puerto Rico in Washington, D.C.. In 1977, Mr. Guerra- Mondragon entered the Foreign Service. He served in the Office of the Secretary of State, the Bureau of Inter-American Affairs, the Bureau of International Organization Affairs, with three years service at the U. S. Embassy in Mexico. Mr. Guerra-Mondragon, was detailed to the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI) during his last two years with the Foreign Service at the U. S. Department of State. At NDI, Mr. Guerra-Mondragon was in charge of its Latin America and Caribbean programs.

After leaving the Foreign Service, Mr. Guerra- Mondragon joined the Keefe Company, a political, economic and financial consulting firm based in Washington, D.C., as president of its international division.

Mr. Guerra-Mondragon was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on September 4, 1942. He attended Fordham University, the School of Advanced International Studies at the Johns Hopkins University and the University of Puerto Rico Law School. He served with the National Guard for six years and speaks fluent Spanish.

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