Stanford alumnus James B. Warlick Jr.’78 has been named the U.S. Ambassador to Bulgaria, as confirmed by the Senate on Dec. 29.

Warlick had served as principal deputy assistant secretary of state in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs (IO) since 2006, in charge of American foreign policy at the United Nations.

His appointment comes after a long history of service in the State Department.

Warlick’s past assignments include stints at U.S. embassies in Moscow, Germany, Bangladesh and the Philippines. For the first half of 2004, he served as principal advisor to Ambassador Paul Bremer in Baghdad, Iraq.

Later this month, the Senate will vote on the appointment of his wife, Mary Warlick, for the Ambassadorship to Serbia.