US Senate confirms Biden's nominee for ambassador to S'pore
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Charissa Yong US Correspondent In Washington, Charissa Yong
The US Senate has confirmed President Joe Biden's pick for ambassador to Singapore, technology entrepreneur Jonathan Kaplan.
Mr Kaplan, who is in his early 50s, was confirmed on Friday by the Senate by voice vote, a procedure in which the tally of votes and how each senator voted are not recorded.
He is the founder of video camera company Pure Digital Technologies and co-founder of EducationSuperHighway, a non-profit group that brings high-speed Internet to public schools.
At his confirmation hearing on Oct 20, he told senators that he planned to strengthen trade and security ties between Singapore and the United States, and work closely with Singapore to tackle the climate crisis.
"If confirmed, I plan to strengthen our bilateral trade relationship and advance an economic agenda that promotes a shared prosperity, further secure our economic resiliency and access to supplies, and work closely with Singapore to tackle the climate crisis," he said.
Senators at the hearing were hopeful that the filling of the ambassador position could help the US deepen its diplomatic and economic engagement with the region, as competition with China heats up.
The post has been empty for almost five years.
Previous ambassador Kirk Wagar, who was appointed by Democratic president Barack Obama, left his post in January 2017 following the inauguration of Republican president Donald Trump.
