Voice of Czech Opposition Nominated as Envoy to U.S.

PRAGUE, Czechoslovakia — The new Czechoslovak foreign minister has chosen a 57-year-old woman who has become the internationally known voice of the opposition Civic Forum movement here to be the nation’s next ambassador to the United States, The Times has learned.

The new ambassador would be Rita Klimova, who has served as a Civic Forum strategist but who is more widely known as the simultaneous translator for the organization’s press conferences. The job has made her the voice of the movement for millions of television watchers and radio listeners around the world.

Foreign Minister Jiri Dienstbier plans to formally submit the nomination to the full Cabinet on Thursday, where it is expected to be approved.

Klimova was born in Czechoslovakia but spent seven years in the United States, from 1939 to 1946, after her parents--Communist Party members--fled the country to escape the Nazis. She speaks fluent English with a New York accent.

A former professional translator, Klimova keeps a set of headphones at home and has been known, on occasion, to simultaneously translate movies for her children and grandchildren.