"Biden Appoints Former East Asia-Pacific Deputy Assistant Secretary Campbell as 'Asia Czar' (Comprehensive)"

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Kim] President-elect Joe Biden plans to appoint veteran foreign policy expert Kurt Campbell, former Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, to the newly created White House position of 'Asia Czar,' according to major foreign media citing the UK Financial Times (FT).

The 'Asia Czars' is a coordinator position within the White House that coordinates Asia-related policies across various U.S. government departments and agencies. President-elect Biden has been appointing experts in various fields to positions called czars (the Russian word for emperor) to coordinate key policies that the next administration will pursue. The FT reported that Biden's decision to create the 'Asia Czars' position and appoint foreign policy expert Campbell reflects the administration's emphasis on Asia-related policies, including U.S.-China relations.

Campbell, a foreign and security policy expert with a Ph.D. from Oxford University, is known as an 'Asia expert.' He served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asia-Pacific during the Bill Clinton administration and as Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs during the Barack Obama administration. During the 2008 U.S. presidential primary, he oversaw Asia policy for Hillary Clinton's campaign. During the Obama administration, he dealt with North Korea issues such as the nuclear threat as Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs and was awarded the Order of Diplomatic Service Merit, Gwanghwa Medal, by the South Korean government in 2014 for his contributions to the South Korea-U.S. alliance. He was also a key architect of Obama's 'Pivot to Asia' policy, which marked the U.S. strategic shift toward Asia. Hillary Clinton's 2011 'Pivot to Asia' policy aimed to shift the focus of U.S. diplomatic and military policy from the Middle East to Asia.

Earlier, in 2007, he founded the Democratic-leaning think tank Center for a New American Security (CNAS), playing a role in providing theoretical frameworks in foreign and security policy. In a report published at the time, he stated, "Japan is the cornerstone of U.S. diplomacy toward Asia, China's power must be recognized as a reality, and the alliance with South Korea must be restored."

As a practical Asia policy official, he was deeply involved in North Korea issues. When North Korean leader Kim Jong-il died in 2011, Campbell, as the U.S. official responsible for Korea policy, traveled between South Korea, China, and Japan to coordinate post-Kim Jong-il North Korea policy. Regarding North Korea, he recently advised in a joint online seminar hosted by the U.S. think tank Atlantic Council and the Korea Foundation (KF) that the Biden administration should decide on its North Korea policy early.

Campbell is known to be classified as a hardliner regarding China policy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.