American flags through the Road to Majority’s Faith and Freedom policy conference in Washington, DC, US., on Saturday, June 24, 2023.
Nathan Howard | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The U.S. State Department has picked veteran diplomat Mark Lambert as its top China policy official, five sources accustomed to the matter said, bringing in latest leadership for an element of the department that has faced staffing problems and criticism over its handling of China-focused initiatives.
Lambert will likely be named because the deputy assistant secretary for China and Taiwan, the sources said, filling the post left in June by Rick Waters.
Waters had also served as the pinnacle of the Office of China Coordination — informally often known as “China House” — a unit the department created late last 12 months to meld China policies across regions and issues. Whether Lambert will assume the China House coordinator title remains to be being discussed, sources said.
Lambert’s appointment is unlikely to vary the tone of Washington’s China policy, which President Joe Biden’s administration says is one in all “intense competition” while attempting to increase engagement with Beijing to stabilize ties.
But Lambert, a well-regarded diplomat with experience in East Asia, is for certain to influence China House, which has been criticized for adding layers of bureaucracy to an already complex decision-making process.
It was unclear when the State Department will formally announce the appointment.
“We have now no personnel announcements to make presently, however the Office of China Coordination stays an integral piece of the U.S. governments efforts to responsibly manage our competition with the People’s Republic of China and advance our vision for an open, inclusive international system,” a State Department spokesperson said in an emailed response to a request for comment.
The U.S. and China are at odds over issues from Taiwan to trade, fentanyl and human rights, but Washington has sought to maintain communication channels open ahead of a possible meeting later this 12 months between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
An Asia expert who did two stints on the U.S. embassy in Beijing, Lambert most recently served as a deputy assistant secretary focused on Japanese, Korean and Mongolian affairs, and on relations with Australia, Latest Zealand, and the Pacific Islands.
In the brand new role, he’ll proceed to report back to Assistant Secretary Daniel Kritenbrink who leads the department’s East Asian and Pacific Affairs bureau.
Reuters reported in May that the State Department delayed sensitive actions toward China to attempt to limit damage to bilateral relations after an alleged Chinese spy balloon crossed U.S. airspace in February.
Senior officials have acknowledged morale and staffing problems at China House, but denied they were linked to how the State department carries out China policy.
Republicans in Congress have questioned whether the Biden administration’s effort to have interaction with senior Chinese officials has led to watered-down measures toward Beijing, an idea the department rejects.
Republican concerns about China House have led to questions on whether the Senate, which has the ability to verify senior appointments, might insist on reviewing any nominee to run the unit.
If that’s the case, two of the sources said that fairly than nominate Lambert to be China House coordinator the State Department might simply appoint an already confirmed official, similar to Kritenbrink.
But two people accustomed to Senate considering told Reuters that for now, senators haven’t any plans to force a confirmation process.
“(China House) remains to be a latest experiment and we must wait to see how effective it’s before we take steps to make it more everlasting,” said one in all the people.
