The interview was recorded in Washington, D.C., on April 3, 2000.The Interviewer was James S. Sutterlin. Ambassador Pickering had a diplomatic career which spanned for four decades. This included ambassadorships in Jordan (1974-1978), Nigeria (1981-1983), El Salvador (1983-1985), Israel (1985-1988), United Nations (1989-1992), India (1992-1993) and Russia (1993-1996). During his assignment as Permanent Representative to the United Nations, he played a critical role during the First Gulf War by taking the lead in the United Nations Security Council's response to the Iran–Iraq situation that began in August 1991. During the interview, conducted on 3 April 2000, while he was Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs for the State Department, Ambassador Pickering speaks of the Iran-Iraq situation and especially about the establishment and working of the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM), which was set up to ensure Iraq’s compliance with policies concerning production and use of weapons of mass destruction as set out in Security Council resolution 687 (1991)(S/RES/687(1991)).