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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary


For Immediate Release October 13, 1995
               PRESIDENT NAMES RALPH R. JOHNSON TO BE
                  AMBASSADOR TO THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC

     The President today announced his intention to nominate Ralph R.

Johnson of Virginia, a Career Member of the Senior Foreign Service,as Ambassador to the Slovak Republic.

Previously, Ambassador Johnson was the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of European and Canadian Affairs, where he supervised the development of policy toward Central Europe. Ambassador Johnson served in U.S. Embassies in Latin America and Eastern Europe. In Washington, he has worked on international trade policy, both at the State Department and at the U.S. Trade Representative's Office, as well as on European political and economic issues. He speaks Polish and Spanish.

Ambassador Johnson was designated Coordinator for Assistance to Central and Eastern Europe by the White House in August 1993 and confirmed by the Senate in May 1994 for the rank of Ambassador.

A native of Oregon, Ambassador Johnson holds a B.A. from Seattle University and a M. A. from Columbia University. He served in the U.S. Army from 1965-1968. He received the Presidential Meritorious Service Award in 1989 and 1993, and the State Department's Superior Honor Award in 1987.

Ralph Johnson is married. He and his wife Ann have two sons. One son is a naval officer and the other is employed in a Washington law firm.

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