Name Wilhelm Wachtmeister Role Diplomat | Died February 3, 2012 | |
Count Wilhelm Hans Fredrik Wachtmeister (29 April 1923 – 3 February 2012) was a Swedish career diplomat who served as the Swedish Ambassador to the United States for 15 years from 1974 to 1989, eventually becoming the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in 1986, as the longest-serving ambassador in the U.S. diplomatic corps. Wachtmeister is married to Countess Ulla Wachtmeister and has one son, Count Erik Wachtmeister, and two daughters.
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Swedish Ambassador to the U.S.
Wachtmeister's predecessor as Dean of the Diplomatic Corps was the Soviet Union's ambassador, which led Wachtmeister to famously quip that this was the first time that a Count had succeeded a communist. Despite being the Swedish Ambassador during a period of turbulent U.S.-Swedish relations engendered by Swedish opposition to the Vietnam War and soon-to-be Prime Minister Olof Palme's declaration that President Richard Nixon was a war criminal for his decision to bomb Cambodia, Wachtmeister managed to forge good relations with successive U.S. Presidential administrations, and even became the first President Bush's favorite tennis partner.
Diplomatic life
Wachtmeister's first prominent role within the diplomatic community was as U.N. General Secretary Dag Hammarskjöld's personal assistant from 1958 to 1961. Wachtmeister continued to serve in both the U.N. and elsewhere as part of the Swedish diplomatic corps.