Nicholas Platt

Nicholas Platt (March 10, 1936 – July 23, 2026) was an American diplomat who served as U.S. Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Pakistan, Philippines, Zambia, and as a high level diplomat in Canada, the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong and Japan. He was a past president of the Asia Society in New York City.

Early years Platt was born in New York City on March 10, 1936. He was the son of Helen (née Choate) Platt and architect Geoffrey Platt.

His maternal grandfather was Joseph H. Choate Jr., and his great-grandfather was diplomat and lawyer Joseph Hodges Choate, who was appointed U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom in 1899 by President William Mckinley. Joseph's brother, William Gardner Choate, established Choate Rosemary Hall.

Platt graduated from the prep school St. Paul's School, Harvard College (B.A., 1957), and Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (M.A., 1959). At Harvard, he was a member of the Hasty Pudding Club and the Porcellian Club.

Ambassadorships On July 22, 1982, President Reagan appointed Platt to succeed Frank G. Wisner as the U.S. Ambassador to Zambia. He presented his credentials on August 31, 1982 and served until he left his post on December 17, 1984 to become the Special Assistant to the Secretary of State and Executive Secretary of the U.S. Department of State. Platt stayed as Executive Secretary until February 13, 1987. Platt presented his credentials on August 27, 1987 and served in this role through George H. W. Bush's election as president until he left his post on July 20, 1991, after receiving his subsequent appointment by President Bush, when he was replaced by Wisner. where he remained until he left his post on November 3, 1992. He was succeeded as Ambassador by John Cameron Monjo.

Later career Following his retirement from the State Department, in 1992 Platt began serving as the fifth president of Asia Society, a non-profit organization that focuses on educating the world about Asia.

Personal life and death On June 28, 1957, he married Sheila Maynard at the Protestant Episcopal Church in Rhinebeck, New York. Sheila was a clinical social worker who worked in Islamabad. She was the daughter of Eileen (née Burden) and investment banker Walter Maynard (son of Walter E. Maynard), and the maternal-granddaughter of banker and equestrian Arthur Scott Burden, and the Hon. Cynthia Burke Roche. The couple had three sons Adam Platt, a restaurant critic for New York Magazine. and Nicholas Platt Jr.

Platt died on July 23, 2026, at the age of 90. His death was announced via his son Oliver's Instagram page on July 27.