Obama appoints key hotspot envoys

by Sanjay Jha | January 23, 2009 at 03:30 am

33 views | 0 Recommendations | 0 comments

President Barack Obama has started rejiging the US adminstration and all the key appointments are being made. Mrs Hillary Clinton has taken over as the secretary of State. President has also announced the appointments of key US envoys.

George Mitchell, who negotiated an end to Northern Ireland's Troubles, has been charged with moving forward the Middle East peace process.

Richard Holbrooke has been named envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan. He brokered the 1995 deal that ended the war in the former Yugoslavia.

Earlier, Mr Obama ordered Guantanamo Bay prison camp to close within a year.

The US Senate has approved President Obama's choice of Mary Schapiro to head the financial watchdog, the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Confirmation of his Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner, is expected on Monday, Democratic Senate leaders said.

A panel cleared the way for his full nomination despite concern he failed to pay his taxes on time some years ago.

'New management'

All overseas CIA detention centres for terror suspects are to close as well, Mr Obama ordered.

He also signed executive orders for a review of military trials for terror suspects and a ban on harsh interrogation methods that critics have said amount to torture.

With Thursday's announcements, Mr Obama has signalled that American diplomacy is under new management, says the BBC's Kevin Connolly in Washington.