President-elect Joe Biden announced on Saturday that he will appoint two veterans of the Obama administration to senior positions in the State Department.
Wendy Sherman, who led the U.S. negotiating team for the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, is her choice for deputy secretary of state. Biden promised to re-enter the business, reversing President Trump’s withdrawal in 2018.
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Sherman tweeted that she is “very honored to be nominated to join this extraordinary team.”
Victoria Nuland, deputy secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs in the Obama administration, is Biden’s choice for undersecretary of state for political affairs.
Nuland and Sherman are the two most senior Obama officials among the five officials announced on Saturday. They will work under the new secretary of state, Antony Blinken, who served as undersecretary of state and chief deputy national security adviser in the Obama administration.
“This diverse and talented team, led by nominated Secretary of State Blinken, embodies my core belief that America is stronger when working with our allies,” said Biden in a statement.
“Collectively, they have secured some of the most important diplomatic and national security achievements in recent memory – and I am confident that they will use their diplomatic experience and skill to restore America’s global and moral leadership. America is back,” he said.
Biden also announced that his longtime Senate aide, Brian McKeon, will be the deputy secretary of state for the administration.
Bonnie Jenkins will be undersecretary for arms control and international security matters, and Uzra Zeya will be undersecretary for civil security, democracy and human rights. Both are ex-diplomats.
All choices require confirmation from the Senate.
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Although Biden emphasized the experience of all his nominees, the number of former Obama employees on his State Department team underscores his intention to return to a multilateralist approach, rejecting the “America First” mandate defended by President Trump .
The ads come a day after it was announced that Obama’s former White House communications director, Anita Dunn, will serve as Biden’s senior adviser.
Fox News’ Patrick Ward and The Associated Press contributed to this report.