Vanden Heuvel’s Nomination Asdeputy U.S. Envoy to UN Seen Strengthening State Department Approaches

President Carter’s nomination of William J. vanden Heuvel as deputy U. S. Ambassador to the United Nations, is seen as strengthening the State Department’s approaches in that organization formally and informally.

The State Department had soured on former Ambassador Andrew Young because of his freewheeling tactics that culminated in his resignation last month when he misled and embarrassed the Department on his meeting with the Palestine Liberation Organization observer at the UN.

Neither Donald McHenry, who succeeded Young last Sunday as the Ambassador to the UN, nor vanden Heuvel are expected to go beyond State Department guidance on issues. However, vanden Heuvel’s record appears to indicate his personal understanding of Israel’s problems.

The U. S. Mission in New York includes five members with the rank of Ambassador. McHenry was number three in the Mission under Young, behind deputy James Leonard until last spring when Leonard was named deputy to Special Mideast Ambassador Robert Strauss. Leonard, who had been involved in the United Nations Association of the U. S. took an “evenhanded” approach to Middle East affairs.

Vanden Heuvel, the U. S. Ambassador to UN agencies in Europe since 1977, gained attention last May when he forcefully led the opposition to the attempt by the Communist-Arab bloc at the World Health Assembly in Geneva to oust Israel from the World Health Organization. He also succeeded in thwarting a move by the bloc to shift the WHO Mideast office from Cairo as an expression of their anger over Egypt’s negotiations with Israel. State Department sources emphasized today that vanden Heuvel was acting on its instructions and that he was not personally motivated.

Born in Rochester, N. Y. in 1930, vanden Heuvel has practiced law in New York City. He was co-chairman of the Carter-Mondale presidential campaign in New York State in 1976.