Obama's ambassador to NATO to head Chicago foreign policy think-tank

By Julian Pecquet - 02/13/13 02:00 PM ET

President Obama's ambassador to NATO, Ivo Daalder, has been tapped to lead the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, the think tank announced Wednesday.

Daalder, who was nominated in 2009, will take over as president on July 1. His successor as ambassador hasn't been named yet.

"My experience as NATO ambassador has reinforced the importance of organizations such as The Chicago Council,” Daalder said in a statement. "This is precisely the position I had hoped to find at this point in my career. Working closely with the Board, I am confident we can further increase the intellectual capital and the local, national and international visibility of The Chicago Council.”

Daalder served as President Bill Clinton's National Security Council director for European affairs, where he helped coordinate U.S. policy during the war in Bosnia. As ambassador to NATO he helped negotiate the multi-lateral intervention in Libya.

Daalder takes over from Marshall Bouton, who headed the council for 12 years.

His predecessor as NATO ambassador, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland, is also moving on to a policy job, The Washington Post reported. She may be replaced by Jen Psaki, President Obama's traveling press secretary during the 2012 presidential election who also worked on John Kerry's 2004 campaign.