--- title: William Burns, Deputy Secretary of State, to Retire in October description: The State Department said Friday that its second in command will retire in October. canonical: https://time.com/60153/william-burns-deputy-secretary-of-state-retiring/ author: Noah Rayman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-04-11T22:09:44.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-21T07:16:36.935Z article:section: Politics og:title: William Burns, Deputy Secretary of State, to Retire in October og:description: The State Department said Friday that its second in command will retire in October. og:url: https://time.com/60153/william-burns-deputy-secretary-of-state-retiring/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt041bcc71aced9e53/69868a56cd684831d50941bf/476983669.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Senate Foreign Relations Committee Holds Hearings On Syria And Ukraine og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: William Burns, Deputy Secretary of State, to Retire in October twitter:description: The State Department said Friday that its second in command will retire in October. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt041bcc71aced9e53/69868a56cd684831d50941bf/476983669.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Top Career Diplomat William Burns Will Retire  by [Noah Rayman](https://time.com/author/noah-rayman/)  ## Noah Rayman Apr 11, 2014 10:09 PM UTC  U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee March 6, 2014 in Washington, DC. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee March 6, 2014 in Washington, DC.Win McNamee—Getty Images  by [Noah Rayman](https://time.com/author/noah-rayman/)  ## Noah Rayman Apr 11, 2014 10:09 PM UTC The State Department [said Friday](http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2014/04/224720.htm) that its second in command will retire in October. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns, [a career diplomat](http://swampland.time.com/2011/04/05/what-bill-burns-ascension-at-state-says-about-obamas-foreign-policy/) who led the White House’s behind-the-scene efforts to bring Iran to the negotiating table, is only the second career Foreign Service officer to hold his post. He has twice delayed his departure, including the second time as the request of President Barack Obama, [according](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/12/world/official-who-led-secret-talks-with-iran-plans-to-retire.html) to the New York _Times_. “Since I took office, I have relied on him for candid advice and sensitive diplomatic missions – he has been a skilled advisor, consummate diplomat, and inspiration to generations of public servants,” Obama said in a statement. “The country is stronger for Bill’s service. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/60153/william-burns-deputy-secretary-of-state-retiring/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/60153/william-burns-deputy-secretary-of-state-retiring/"},"headline":"Top Career Diplomat William Burns Will Retire","datePublished":"2014-04-11T22:09:44.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T07:16:36.935Z","description":"William Burns, who was instrumental in behind-the-scenes negotiations with Iran, will stay on until October, raising the specter that he will again be a key player if formal talks for a nuclear agreement fall through by the July deadline","url":"https://time.com/60153/william-burns-deputy-secretary-of-state-retiring/","keywords":["White House","diplomacy","President Barack Obama"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt041bcc71aced9e53/69868a56cd684831d50941bf/476983669.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Noah Rayman","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/noah-rayman/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt041bcc71aced9e53/69868a56cd684831d50941bf/476983669.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Senate Foreign Relations Committee Holds Hearings On Syria And Ukraine","caption":"Senate Foreign Relations Committee Holds Hearings On Syria And Ukraine","creditText":"Win McNamee—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/white-house/","name":"White House"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/60153/william-burns-deputy-secretary-of-state-retiring/","name":"Top Career Diplomat William Burns Will Retire"}}]}] ```