As the Chief of the Washington Support Unit of the Office of the Office of Program Management – Ministry of the Interior (OPM-MOI) , Ambassador Saloom’s main responsibility is to lead the Washington Support Unit in its efforts to assist OPM-MOI in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as it implements the Technical Cooperation Agreement with the Saudi Ministry of Interior.

In 2007 and 2008, Ambassador Saloom was the Senior Advisor for Iraq Transition to Ambassador Satterfield, who was the Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State and Coordinator for Iraq. He focused on economic issues, stability operations, capacity building, provincial outreach and civil/military cooperation.

In 2006 and 2007, Ambassador Saloom served as the Director of the Iraq Reconstruction Management Office in Baghdad, where he coordinated reconstruction activities, including the Provincial Reconstruction Teams, and managed implementation of the $22 billion Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund. Previously, he served at the Office of Terrorist Finance and Sanctions, Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs from 2003 to 2006. He spent one year leading State Department participation in recovering over $1.2 billion in Iraqi assets held outside Iraq, then took responsibility for countering Iraqi insurgent finance and other near east terrorist finance issues.

He served as the Minister-Counselor for Economic Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Berlin during 1997 to 2001. In 1996 and 1997 he was the Director of the Africa Economic Policy Staff, Bureau of African Affairs at the Department of State.

From 1993 to 1996 he served as U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Guinea.

In 1990 to 1993 he was the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Finance and Development at the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs (EB), Department of State and head of the U.S. Delegation to the international body that negotiated debt rescheduling and relief for countries unable to meet their debt obligations. He negotiated over a hundred debt agreements, many involving billions of dollars; often with strategically important countries. During 1987 to 1990 he served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy Niamey in Niger. His previous tours include Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Zaire and Germany and in the Department of State Economic Bureau (Aviation Negotiations).

Mr. Saloom received a BA from Georgetown in Economics Cum Laude with Distinction in Economics and a MS Management from MIT. He is fluent in both French and German. He has received the Presidential Service Award, numerous Department of State Superior Honor Awards and Meritorious Honor Awards, and is an honorary recipient of the Multinational Forces Iraq Service Medal for his contributions to civil/military
cooperation in Iraq.