America's president Barack Obama has picked John Kerry as
secretary of state, a post that will be voided after Hillary Clinton steps down
from it after four long years.
John Kerry is best known for being a navy lieutenant of the
Vietnam War and the Democratic candidate for the 2004 presidential election
where he was defeated by George Bush. After the withdrawal of Susan Rice, a
favourite for the job, the nomination of Senator Kerry was widely expected.
Tested and proven, this man possesses adequate experience to
be America's top diplomat. As quoted by Obama "few individuals know as
many presidents and prime ministers or grasp our foreign policies as firmly as
John Kerry.”
John Kerry, who is more pro-Europe than his predecessor, is
expected to be welcomed in the continent. France's foreign minister Laurent
Fabius has even endorsed the nomination and congratulated his potential
American counterpart. Kerry will most probably make the U.S. shift its focus
from East to West.
Kerry is also seen as the healing hand for the Middle East
as well as South Asia. He has gone on trips to countries like Pakistan (after
Osama was killed) and Syria (to meet its president) over the last few years and
is portrayed as the person to mend Arab-Israel ties.
During his 2004 election campaign, Kerry gave a then
relatively unknown Obama the opportunity to step onto the political stage by
selecting him to give the keynote speech at the Democratic convention. Some may
say that this is Obama's way of reciprocation.
After two women, John Kerry will become the first male
secretary of state in almost eight years. The challenges which await him in his
new job include Iran's nuclear issue and the ever-growing unrest in Syria.
But nobody else fits the bill as perfectly as Kerry himself.
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