size of their oil reserves to allow the Iranian government to negotiate a fair deal. United Geophysical was later bought by Union Oil, though Hoover stayed on as president of the company. Consolidated Engineering went public in 1945 and Hoover sold all of his stock. Special Envoy, 1953–1954 In the wake of the Abadan Crisis and the 1953 Iranian coup d'état, in September 1953, President of the United States Dwight D. Eisenhower asked Hoover to travel to Iran as his special envoy to attempt to broker a deal between the U.S., Britain and Iran. United States Secretary of State John Foster Dulles asked Hoover to work out a deal in 45 days; Hoover stayed in Tehran from October 17 to November 4 1953. He ultimately worked out a deal whereby, in August 1954, the National Iranian Oil Company became a consortium owned 40% by the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company; 40% to be divided equally (8% each) among the five major American companies; British Petroleum to have a 40% share; Royal Dutch Shell to have 14%; and the Compagnie Française des Pétroles, a French Company, to receive 6%. Iran got now 25% of the profits compared to 20% of the original treaty with the AIOC. Officials at the United States Department of State praised Hoover's conduct during these negotiations as the greatest one-man performance since John Foster Dulles' work during the negotiations over the Treaty of San Francisco. Under Secretary of State, 1954–1957 Eisenhower was impressed by Hoover's performance as well. Eisenhower now asked Hoover to become Under Secretary of State. Hoover agreed and, after Senate confirmation, he would serve as Under Secretary of State from October 4, 1954 until February 5, 1957. Hoover was initially criticized for his performance, in particular because his hearing impairment led to the perception he was gruff and his insistence on perfection led to the perception he was indecisive. Owing to Secretary of State John Foster Dulles' frequent illnesses, Hoover was often Acting Secretary of State, and in this capacity made two decisions widely regarded as missteps: (1) he rejected a Chinese overture in April 1955 to negotiate agreements that could prevent war between the two countries; and (2) indecision as to whether to ship 18 tanks to Saudi Arabia in winter 1955 over the objections of Israel. By late 1956, however, Hoover was generally regarded as having learned the job, and was seen as a