John Alfred Scali (April 27, 1918 – October 9, 1995)[1] was the United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 1973 to 1975.[2] From 1961 he was also a long time correspondent for ABC News.

John A. Scali
11th United States Ambassador to the United Nations
In office
February 20, 1973 – June 29, 1975
PresidentRichard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Preceded byGeorge H. W. Bush
Succeeded byDaniel Patrick Moynihan
Personal details
Born
John Alfred Scali

(1918-04-27)April 27, 1918
Canton, Ohio, U.S.
DiedOctober 9, 1995(1995-10-09) (aged 77)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Spouse(s)Helen Glock (1946–1973)
Denise St. Germain (1973–1995)
EducationBoston University (BA)

As a correspondent for ABC, Scali became an intermediary during the Cuban Missile Crisis and later a part of the Nixon Administration. Scali gained fame after it became known in 1964 that in October 1962, a year after he joined ABC News, he had carried a critical message from KGB Colonel Aleksandr Fomin (the cover name for Alexander Feklisov) to U.S. officials. He left ABC in 1971 to serve as a foreign affairs adviser to President Nixon, becoming U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations in 1973. Scali re-joined ABC in 1975 where he worked until retiring in 1993.

Scali was contacted by Soviet embassy official (and KGB Station Chief) Fomin about a proposed settlement to the crisis, and subsequently he acted as a contact between Fomin and President Kennedy and the Executive Committee. However, it was without government direction that Scali responded to new Soviet conditions with a warning that a U.S. invasion was only hours away, prompting the Soviets to settle the crisis quickly.

References

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  1. ^ J.Y. Smith (October 10, 1995). "JOHN SCALI DIES". The Washington Post.
  2. ^ "War and Peace in the Nuclear Age; At The Brink; Interview with John Scali, 1986", Openvault.wgbh.org, retrieved 2021-08-06
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Diplomatic posts
Preceded by United States Ambassador to the United Nations
1973–1975
Succeeded by