Obama Appoints First Black American Envoy To The Philippines

November 20, 2009 2:00 p.m. EST

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - The Obama administration has chosen the first African-American to serve as U.S. ambassador to the Philippines.

Harry Thomas was nominated on Friday to succeed American envoy Kirstie Kenney, who has held the post in Manila since her appointment in 2006. He will need Senate confirmation before assuming his new role.

A former ambassador to Bangladesh, Thomas until late this year was concurrently director general of the Foreign Service and director of human resources at the State Department. He served as White House Director for South Asia at the National Security Council from 2001 to 2002, and more recently as executive secretary of the State Department. A native of New York who joined the Foreign Service in 1984, he speaks Spanish, Hindi and Bangla.

The White House announced the change a week after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Manila, the first time a secretary of state did so since 2002.

"As treaty allies, we are working to meet the challenges and seize the opportunities of the 21st century," Clinton had said. "I want to commend the Government of the Philippines, which is taking on an increasingly important leadership role in ASEAN, in APEC, across the Pacific region, and globally on issues such as nonproliferation."

"Our two nations are linked by more than treaty. We have bonds of culture and commerce, we have shared histories...And I am personally very pleased that an injustice has finally been corrected with the passage of the assistance for Filipino veterans who served side by side with our United States military forces," she added, referring to the Philippines' special relationship with the United States as the first American colony and key ally during World War II.

Clinton's trip was one among a series of high-profile visits that are part of the Obama administration's efforts to strengthen ties in the Philippines as well as in Asia, the world's fastest growing region. Defense Sec. Robert Gates was in Manila in June, Agriculture Sec. Tom Vilsack met with Filipino counterparts in October, and Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo met with Obama at the White House in July.