through the Reagan Administration as Undersecretary of State. In 1989, President George H. W. Bush recommended him for selection as Undersecretary General of the United Nations for Political Affairs. In this position Spiers became the highest-ranking American citizen in the United Nations Secretariat. Spiers retired in March 1992 with two Presidential Distinguished Executive Service Awards and the rank of Career Ambassador, an honorary rank he was accorded by the President and the US Senate in 1984. Equivalent to "four star" military rank it is reserved for a small number of career Foreign Service officers who have served with distinction in the highest positions of the Foreign Service. Life after government service In 2004 Spiers again returned to the public eye when he joined Diplomats and Military Commanders for Change, a group of former diplomats, ambassadors, and military leaders criticizing the foreign policy of President George W. Bush and supporting the election of John Kerry in the 2004 U.S. presidential election. Spiers died in Exeter, New Hampshire in June 2021, at the age of 95. Works "The Anatomy of Terrorism" (PDF). Foreign Service Journal. September 2004. pp. 43–47, 49–50. "Where Are We Going From Here?" Overseas Democrat. August 21, 2003. "Terrorism: How Do You Know When You Win?" (PDF). Vermont Rutland Herald. March 24, 2004. "Map to Peace: Going Nowhere Fast" (PDF). Vermont Rutland Herald. September 2, 2003. References Brief biography from a press release of Vermont Governor Jim Douglas's office. External links 1925 births 2021 deaths Dartmouth College alumni Princeton School of Public and International Affairs alumni United States Navy officers United States Navy personnel of World War II Ambassadors of the United States to the Bahamas Ambassadors of the United States to Turkey United States Career Ambassadors Nixon administration personnel Reagan administration personnel Lyndon B. Johnson administration personnel Carter administration personnel People from Orange, New Jersey People from Windham County, Vermont Ambassadors of the United States to Pakistan United States Foreign Service personnel American expatriates in Switzerland American expatriates in the United Kingdom American expatriates in Peru American expatriates in France American expatriates in Belgium 20th-century American diplomats