Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs, 1978-1981

Saunders' swearing-in photograph

A photograph of Harold Saunders being sworn in as the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian affairs. His children are holding the Bible.

Kissinger letter to Saunders

A letter written by Henry Kissinger to Harold Saunders congratulating him on being appointed the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian affairs.

Quickly after taking over for Roy Atherton, Saunders and others went to the Middle East with the directive to invite the Israeli and Egyptian leadership to Camp David for peace negotiations. Once the invitations were settled, preparations for the meeting were undertaken. They even went so far as to build an actual round table for the negotiations. Ultimately, the discussions were productive and the Accords laid the groundwork for a 1979 Egypt-Israeli peace treaty and earned Sadat and Begin the 1978 Nobel Peace Prize.

Saunders identification tag

An identification card for Harold Saunders on a trip accompanying President Jimmy Carter to Egypt and Israel.

Greeting Sadat at Camp David

A photograph of several American diplomats greeting Anwar Sadat at Camp David during negotiations for peace in the Middle East. Saunders appears to the right of Vice President Walter Mondale.

"Carter's Risky Summit" Newsweek article

An article from Newsweek magazine on the Camp David Accords and Middle Eastern peace. Harold Saunders appears in one of the photographs in the article.

Harold Saunders played a pivotal role in the Camp David Accords—a pair of political agreements between Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin—which were mediated by President Jimmy Carter at Camp David itself.

Carter and the Israeli team

A photograph of President Jimmy Carter meeting with a team from Israel, led by Menachem Begin, Prime Minister, to discuss peace negotiations.

The Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty article

An article in a Department of State newsletter featuring an article on the Egyptian-Israeli Peace Treaty.

Assistant Secretary of State Harold H. Saunders Statement Before the Middle East Subcommittee of The House International Relations Committee on Peace in the Middle East Agreed at Camp David

A statement given by Harold Saunders before a House subcommittee regarding the Camp David Accords and peace in the Middle East.

Saunders’ remarkable work in diplomatic service earned him growing respect and recognition over the decades. In 1978, his record earned him The President’s Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service, the highest honor that can be given for career civilian service.

Program for the President's Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service

The program from the ceremony giving the President's Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service to individuals, including Harold Saunders.

Saunders receiving award photograph

Saunders stands with the Secretary of State, Edmund Muskie, after receiving the President's Award for Federal Civilian Service, the highest honor available for a civil servant.

Saunders receiving award photograph

Photograph of the Secretary of State, Edmund Muskie, placing the President's Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service around Harold Saunders' neck.

Most of the rest of Saunders' time in government was spent focused on the Iran Hostage Crisis, during which fifty-two U.S. diplomats and citizens were held hostage by a militaristic group supporting the Iranian Revolution. They were held hostage from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, and finally released as the result of tireless negotiations facilitated in large part by Saunders and his colleagues. In this role, Saunders was the leading adviser to Deputy Secretary of State Warren M. Christopher, who was the Carter administration’s chief negotiator in the crisis. Saunders was on the plane which flew the former hostages out of Iran once an agreement was reached.

Baltimore Sun article

A newspaper clipping of a photograph of Harold Saunders accompanying Abdelkarim Ghoreiab, Algerian ambassador to Iran, into the United States State Department.

Statement Before the Middle East Subcommittee of the House International Relations Committee

A typed transcript of a statement given by Harold Saunders before the House Middle East subcommittee regarding the Iran Hostage Crisis.

Signed postcard

A postcard signed by the crew of the plane flying the freed American hostages from Algiers to Wiesbaden.

Briefing Memorandum

A briefing memorandum discussing the Iran Hostage Crisis, written by Harold Saunders and Anthony Lake.

As the Iran Hostage Crisis was resolved, Saunders’ decades of government service came to an end. Still devoted to brokering peace, he moved to the private sector to further the cause. His departure from the federal government gave his colleagues the chance to truly honor his innumerable accomplishments for the country.