President Clinton will name Strobe Talbott, his right-hand man on Russian policy and other Soviet republics, as the new deputy secretary of state, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.
Talbott replaces Clifton Wharton, who resigned in November amid reports he was unable to effectively handle policy issues or be a credible stand-in for Secretary of State Warren Christopher, the newspaper said.Talbott traveled to California Monday to meet with Christopher for a joint announcement, the Post reported.
In addition to his new post, Talbott also will remain closely involved with managing relations with Russia and the other Soviet republics, administration officials told the Post. Talbott firmly supports U.S. aid to Russia.