Ural Alexis Johnson (October 17, 1908 – March 24, 1997) was a

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

Background

Ural Alexis Johnson was born in Falun, Kansas, into a family of Swedish descent. His mother named him for the mountain range, of which she learned from a geography book. He had a rural upbringing and schooling until 1923, when the family moved to

Glendale, California Glendale is a city located primarily in the Verdugo Mountains region, with a small portion in the San Fernando Valley, of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located about north of downtown Los Angeles. As of 2024, Glendale ha ...

. He graduated from Occidental College in Los Angeles in 1931, majoring in economics.

Career

Johnson entered the

United States Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carr ...

in 1935. After serving in

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

, Mukden (now

Shenyang Shenyang,; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly known as Fengtian formerly known by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a sub-provincial city in China and the list of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Liaonin ...

, where he was interned at the start of World War II), and

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, he was assigned as Consul and later Consul General at

Yokohama is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, from 1945 to 1949. From 1949 to 1953, he served in various positions in the Department of State's Far East Bureau, mainly concerned with Japan and Korea, rising to be Deputy Assistant Secretary of State with responsibilities for the entire bureau." He played a role in the armistice in the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

. He was ambassador to

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

from 1953 to 1958,

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

from 1958 to 1961, and to

from 1966 to 1969. While Ambassador to Czechoslovakia, he represented the United States in a long series of meetings in Geneva with the Chinese Communists. In the absence of diplomatic relations these were the principal point of contact between the two governments. He was Deputy Under Secretary for Political Affairs and in the Excomm from 1961 to 1964. From 1964 to 1965, he was Deputy Ambassador to the Republic of Vietnam. In 1965, he returned to the position of Deputy Under Secretary for Political Affairs from 1965 to 1966. He also served as

Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs The under secretary of state for political affairs is currently the fourth-ranking position in the United States Department of State, after the United States Secretary of State, secretary, the United States Deputy Secretary of State, deputy secre ...

from 1969 to 1973. After the

Independence of Bangladesh The independence of Bangladesh was Proclamation of Bangladeshi Independence, declared from Pakistan on 26 March 1971, which is now celebrated as Independence Day (Bangladesh), Independence Day. The Bangladesh Liberation War started on 26 March ...

, he said

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

would be always an ''international basket case''. He was chief United States delegate to the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks from 1973 until retirement in 1977. His memoir '' The Right Hand of Power'' was published in 1984. As Under Secretary for Political Affairs at the U.S. State Department, Johnson was involved in the

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 was a spaceflight conducted from July 16 to 24, 1969, by the United States and launched by NASA. It marked the first time that humans Moon landing, landed on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin l ...

lunar landing ceremonial activities. He suggested that a plaque be placed on the surface of the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It Orbit of the Moon, orbits around Earth at Lunar distance, an average distance of (; about 30 times Earth diameter, Earth's diameter). The Moon rotation, rotates, with a rotation period (lunar ...

. After several changes in a high level committee, it stated, "we came in peace for all mankind." Johnson was also sensitive to the idea of raising a U.S. flag on the surface of the Moon, as it might symbolize territorial acquisition. Later, the

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

decided that a U.S. flag would be placed on the Moon by

Neil Armstrong Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aerospace engineering, aeronautical engineer who, in 1969, became the Apollo 11#Lunar surface operations, first person to walk on the Moon. He was al ...

and

Buzz Aldrin Buzz Aldrin ( ; born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr.; January 20, 1930) is an American former astronaut, engineer and fighter pilot. He made three extravehicular activity, spacewalks as pilot of the 1966 Gemini 12 mission, and was the Lunar Module Eag ...

. Ural Alexis Johnson died on March 24, 1997, from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

. His last residence was at

Cary, North Carolina Cary is a town in Wake County, North Carolina, Wake, Chatham County, North Carolina, Chatham, and Durham County, North Carolina, Durham counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is part of the Raleigh, North Carolina, Raleigh-Cary, NC M ...

. However, he was buried at the Rock Creek Cemetery in

Washington, District of Columbia Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

. In 1995 Johnson was presented the Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy Award by the American Foreign Service Association.

Selected works

*''Economic assistance and progress in Thailand'' (1960) *''The emerging nations of Asia'' (1962) *''The meaning of Vietnam'' (1965) *''Prospects for a more rational world: Reflections on international relations'' (1972) *''Arms Control and the Gray Area Weapons System'' (1978) *''The present and future role of the United States in Asia'' (1978) *''The Right Hand of Power, The Memoirs of an American Diplomat'' (1984) (with Jef McAllister)

Media

Appearances * ''Cuban Missile Crisis Revisited''. Produced for The Idea Channel by the Free to Choose Network, 1983. *
Phase I (U1015)
(January 22, 1983) *** Featuring McGeorge Bundy, Richard Neustadt, Edwin Martin, Dean Rusk & Donald Wilson in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

. *
Phase II, Part I (U1016)
(June 27, 1983) *** Featuring

McGeorge Bundy McGeorge "Mac" Bundy (March 30, 1919 – September 16, 1996) was an American academic who served as the U.S. National Security Advisor to Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson from 1961 through 1966. He was president of the Ford Fou ...

, Richard Neustadt, Robert S. McNamara & George W. Ball in Washington D.C. *
Phase II, Part II (U1017)
(June 27, 1983) *** Featuring

, Richard Neustadt, Robert S. McNamara & George W. Ball in Washington D.C.

References

Other sources

* *

External links

Foreign Service Journal article on his Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy Award.

(Johnson, U(ral) Alexis - Hutchinson encyclopedia article about Johnson, U(ral) Alexis)Cooperative Research
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, U. Alexis 1908 births 1997 deaths People from Saline County, Kansas Occidental College alumni Under secretaries of state for political affairs United States career ambassadors Deaths from pneumonia in North Carolina Lyndon B. Johnson administration personnel Nixon administration personnel Walsh School of Foreign Service alumni American people of Swedish descent Writers from Kansas Recipients of the President's Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service 20th-century American diplomats