Peter Cyril Wyche Flory (born 16 October 1955) is an American attorney who served as the

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

Assistant Secretary General for Defence Investment from January 2007 to August 2010. He previously served in the

George W. Bush Administration George W. Bush's tenure as the 43rd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2001, and ended on January 20, 2009. Bush, a Republican from Texas, took office following a narrow victory over Democratic in ...

as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Policy from August 2005 to December 2006.

Early life and education

Born in

Pinehurst, North Carolina Pinehurst is a village in Moore County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census, the village population was 13,124. It is home of the historic Pinehurst Resort, a Golf resort, which has hosted multiple United States Open Champion ...

, Flory is a 1973 graduate of St. Mark's School in

Southborough, Massachusetts Southborough is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It incorporates the villages of Cordaville, Fayville, and Southville. Its name is often informally shortened to Southboro, a usage seen on many area signs and maps, though ...

. He attended

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, graduating with a B.A. degree in 1979. Flory continued his education by taking courses at the

Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is located in Pulitzer Hall on the university's Morningside Heights campus in New York City. Founded in 1912 by Joseph Pulitzer, Columbia Journalism School is one of the oldest journalism s ...

until 1980. He later earned his J.D. degree from the

Georgetown University Law Center The Georgetown University Law Center (Georgetown Law) is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment and ...

in 1993.

Career

In February 1993, Flory joined the law firm of

Hughes Hubbard & Reed Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP ( a.k.a. "Hughes Hubbard" or "HHR") is a multinational law firm headquartered in New York City with offices in the United States, France, and Japan. The firm's history dates back to the late 19th century, when it co ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

and worked as an attorney there until April 1997, when he became a counsel for the

United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence The United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (sometimes referred to as the Intelligence Committee or SSCI) is dedicated to overseeing the United States Intelligence Community—the agencies and bureaus of the federal government of ...

. After the election of President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

, he became the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs in July 2001. President Bush nominated him to be the Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Policy on 1 June 2004. Flory appeared before the Senate Committee on Armed Services on 21 July 2004 and the nomination was reported favorably to the full Senate on 30 September 2004. Receiving no further consideration during the 108th Congress, it was returned to the President on 8 December 2004. His nomination was resubmitted to the Senate on 24 January 2005, but it was not reported back to the full Senate by the Committee on Armed Services until 28 July 2005. President Bush used his

recess appointment In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the president of a federal official when the U.S. Senate is in recess. Under the U.S. Constitution's Appointments Clause, the President is empowered to nominate, and with the advi ...

power to grant Flory the position on 2 August 2005. The Senate never officially confirmed his appointment and the position of Assistant Secretary for International Security Policy was discontinued on 1 December 2006, with its responsibilities being transferred to other Assistant Secretaries of Defense. In January 2007, Flory replaced

Marshall Billingslea Marshall Billingslea is a former Assistant Secretary for Terrorist Financing at the United States Department of the Treasury. He was the Trump Administration's nominee to be Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Af ...

Assistant Secretary General for Defence Investment in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

. He was succeeded by Patrick Auroy in October 2010.

Personal

Flory is the son of Henry Cyril Flory (28 August 1910 – 5 September 2001) and Elizabeth "Betsy" Wyche (15 November 1919 – 19 November 2007), who were married on 13 February 1954. His father was an immigrant to the United States who had been born in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

and had served as a captain in the

R.A.F. The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. His mother was the daughter of

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Ira T. Wyche Major General Ira Thomas Wyche (16 October 1887 – 8 July 1981) was a career officer in the United States Army who ultimately became Inspector General of the United States Army. A graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, du ...

. Flory has three sisters and two nieces. Flory married Kathleen Marie McGovern on 26 November 1983 in

Moore County, North Carolina Moore County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, its population was 99,727. Its county seat is Carthage and its largest municipality is the Village of Pinehurst. It is a border county between the Pi ...

. They have three sons and three daughters.

References

1955 births Living people St. Mark's School (Massachusetts) alumni People from Pinehurst, North Carolina McGill University alumni Georgetown University Law Center alumni Lawyers from Washington, D.C. George W. Bush administration personnel Recess appointments during the George W. Bush administration United States Assistant Secretaries of Defense NATO officials {{US-gov-bio-stub