Kurt Campbell to become top envoy to US State Department

Harvard professor Kurt Campbell is poised to bring new changes in US policy toward two major dynamic regions in his new capacity as US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and the Pacific.

Currently chief executive officer of the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) and chair of the editorial board of the Washington Quarterly, Campbell  has been announced to replace the well-known diplomat Christopher Hill as US Assistant Secretary of State.

His appointment by Secretary of State-designate Clinton was hardly surprising as he has long had links to Clinton, whom he supported when she was running against then-Senator Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Campbell formerly served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for Asia and Pacific affairs under former President Bill Clinton’s administration during which he played a central role in redefining the Japan-US alliance.

Japanese analysts expected Campbell’s selection to be favorable to Japan, thus serving to counterbalance Hillary Clinton, who some in Japan fear would lead the US to tilt toward China, Associated Press reported.

Since US president-elect Obama had links with Indonesia, Campbell is expected to play a key role in strengthening relations between two of the most populous democracies in the world.  

A seasoned diplomat, he has held many public service posts, including as deputy assistant secretary of defense for Asia and the Pacific in the Pentagon, National Security Council staff director, deputy special counselor to the president for NAFTA in the White House, and White House fellow at the Department of the Treasury.

He is also an advisory board member of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington think tank.

He received his B.A. from the University of California, San Diego, a certificate in music and politics from the University of Yerevan in the Armenian Republic of the Soviet Union, and a doctorate in international relations from Oxford University as a Marshall scholar.

He was also an associate professor of public policy and international relations at the John F. Kennedy School of Government and assistant director of the Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University.