Biden picks new envoys for China, Japan

Washington [US], August 21 : US President Joe Biden on Friday announced R. Nicholas Burns as the country's nominee for Ambassador to China and Rahm Emanuel as the country's nominee for Ambassador to Japan, the White House said in a press release.
Burns, a respected former career member of the Foreign Service, currently serves as Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Relations at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. He is also Executive Director of the Aspen Strategy Group and Security Forum and Senior Counselor at the Cohen Group.
During his State Department career, Burns served as Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs. As Under Secretary, he worked with the Chinese government on issues as diverse as Afghanistan, United Nations Sanctions against Iran, North Korea, and US policy in the Indo-Pacific.
While Rahm Emanuel is currently national chair of the Advisory Council of Youth Guidance's Becoming a Man (BAM) mentoring program.
He has served as Mayor of the city of Chicago and White House Chief of Staff to former US president Barack Obama.
As a Mayor, he oversaw increased economic development that revitalized the city and helped solidify its status as a global hub of culture and commerce.
Emanuel also served former US president Bill Clinton as Assistant to the President for Political Affairs and Senior Advisor for Policy and Strategy.