Senators approve an Asia veteran as No. 2 diplomat, underscoring US efforts to keep focus on China
Hindustan TimesWASHINGTON — Senators on Tuesday confirmed a veteran of U.S.-Asian engagement and security as the State Department's second-ranking diplomat, in an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote. HT Image The approval of President Joe Biden's nomination of Kurt Campbell as deputy secretary of state underscores decades of efforts by Biden and his modern predecessors to turn the United States' main foreign policy focus to China as the big challenge for America going forward. Appearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Dec. 7 after his nomination, Campbell pointed to the security significance of the date — the anniversary of a surprise attack from Asia, by Japan, that drew the United States into World War II. “But I would also say December 7 teaches us other things as well,” Campbell told senators. Campbell in his December appearance before the foreign relations committee called Iran a “strategic nemesis” and “antagonist” to the U.S. but not an enemy, opposed calls by Sanders and some Democratic senators to condition military aid to Israel, and argued for strong military support to Ukraine in its war against Russian invaders.
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