Koo, Vi Kuiyuin Wellington

Koo, Vi Kuiyuin Wellington (vē jün wĕl`ĭngtən k), Mandarin Ku Wei-chün, 1887–1985, Chinese Nationalist diplomat, b. Shanghai. Koo was educated at Columbia (B.A., 1908; M.A., 1909; Ph.D., 1912), where he specialized in international law. In 1912, Wellington Koo was secretary to Yüan Shih-kai, president of China. He was ambassador to France (1936–41), Great Britain (1941–46), and the United States (1946–56). He served as delegate to the Paris Peace Conference (1919) and then was a representative on the Council of the League of Nations. At various times he was minister of foreign affairs and prime minister. He headed the Chinese delegation to the San Francisco conference which founded (1945) the United Nations. From 1957 to 1967 he served on the International Court of Justice at The Hague, and then retired to New York.