Curtis Keeble

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Sir Herbert Ben Curtis Keeble , KCMG (* 18th September 1922 in Chingford , London , † 6. December 2008 ) was a British diplomat , who from 1974 to 1976 the first British Ambassador to the German Democratic Republic and 1978-1982 Ambassador to the Soviet Union was.

Life

Herbert Ben Curtis Keeble began studying Modern Languages at the Queen Mary of the University of London after attending Clacton County High School . Because of the Second World War he had to interrupt his studies and did military service in the Line Infantry Regiment Royal Irish Fusiliers (Princess Victoria's) , in which he was promoted to lieutenant on February 20, 1943 . After the war he continued his studies and entered the diplomatic service in 1947. He found in the following period used in numerous missions abroad, such as in 1947 as vice-consul in Batavia in the Dutch East Indies and in 1951 as Deputy Political Advisor to the sector management West Berlin and the State Department ( Foreign Office ) . There he was head of the European Economic Community Section between 1963 and 1965 and then from 1965 to 1968 Counselor for Trade at the Embassy in Switzerland . He was then from 1968 to 1971 envoy for trade and 1971 envoy for political affairs and deputy high commissioner at the high commission in Australia . There he became Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in 1970 for his services .

After his return Keeble was 1,971 to 1,973 of assistive Undersecretary of Economy and Trade (Assistant Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Economic and Commercial)) in the Ministry of Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs ( Foreign and Commonwealth Office ) . In this capacity, he acted in 1970 as the British negotiator in negotiations with Iceland to end the so-called " Second Cod War ". After establishing diplomatic relations, he became the first British ambassador to the German Democratic Republic in January 1974 and remained in this post until 1976, after which Percy Craddock became his successor there. He then served as Deputy Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Chief Clerk between 1976 and 1978. On June 3, 1978, he was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and for his longstanding diplomatic services St George (KCMG) and since then has had the suffix "Sir".

Most recently, Curtis Keeble was appointed Ambassador to the Soviet Union in 1978, succeeding Howard Frank Trayton Smith . He held this position until his retirement in 1982 and was then replaced by Iain Johnstone Sutherland . On June 12, 1982 he was raised to the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George (GCMG). After retiring from the diplomatic service, he was active since 1985 as chairman of the British-Soviet Society (Great Britain-USSR Association) and, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, as chairman of the British-Russian Center (Britain-Russia Center) . He was also Governor of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) from 1985 to 1990 and Chairman of the Foundation for Accountancy and Financial Management from 1992 to 2000 , a foundation that helps former communist countries develop accounting professions for the transition to a market economy .

His marriage to Margaret Fraser in 1947 resulted in three daughters, including the politician Sally Keeble , who represented the Labor Party as a member of the House of Commons between 1997 and 2010 .

Publications

  • The Soviet State , 1994
  • Britain, the Soviet Union and Russia , 2000.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ A DIRECTORY OF BRITISH DIPLOMATS , p. 986
  2. ↑ A DIRECTORY OF BRITISH DIPLOMATS , p. 840
  3. ↑ A DIRECTORY OF BRITISH DIPLOMATS , p. 554
  4. ↑ A DIRECTORY OF BRITISH DIPLOMATS , p. 554
  5. ↑ A DIRECTORY OF BRITISH DIPLOMATS , p. 936
  6. ↑ A DIRECTORY OF BRITISH DIPLOMATS , p. 717
  7. ↑ A DIRECTORY OF BRITISH DIPLOMATS , p. 915
  8. ↑ a b Knights and Dames
  9. ↑ A DIRECTORY OF BRITISH DIPLOMATS , p. 809
personal data
SURNAME Keeble, Curtis
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Keeble, Sir Herbert Ben Curtis (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British diplomat
DATE OF BIRTH September 18, 1922
PLACE OF BIRTH Chingford , London
DATE OF DEATH December 6, 2008