New US envoy Kenney sworn in

Former US Ambassador to Ecuador Kristie Anne Kenney was sworn in Monday by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as the new American envoy to the Philippines.

Kenney, whose appointment was confirmed by the US Senate, is expected to arrive in Manila this month.

Kenney will replace Ambassador Francis Ricciardone, who was appointed ambassador to Egypt.

She was reportedly Rice’s "personal choice" to fill the post vacated by Ricciardone.

Prior to serving as Ambassador to Ecuador, Kenney held senior positions at the State Department and National Security Council in Washington as well as overseas postings in Geneva, Argentina and Jamaica.

Diplomatic sources said Ricciardone and his predecessor, Ambassador Thomas Hubbard, "speak highly" of Kenney who served as executive secretary of the US State Department for three years.

Kenney holds the distinction of being the first woman to hold that key position in the State Department.

Washington was reported to have nominated US Ambassador to South Africa Cameron Hume to replace Ricciardone.

But the US government withdrew Hume’s nomination, a conflict resolution expert, saying his services were needed more in South Africa.

As executive secretary of the State Department, Kenney headed a staff of 185 persons responsible for inter-agency policy coordination and crisis management working directly under former Secretaries Colin Powell and Madeleine Albright.

She also led the transition team from the administration of former US President Bill Clinton to the present Bush administration.

Kenney was also named Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement in 2001 prior to her appointment as US Ambassador to Ecuador in 2002.

A native of Washington DC, Kenney had worked as a page for the US Senate, as a tour guide in the US Capitol, and as an intern in the US House of Representatives. She speaks fluent Spanish and French.

She received the State Department’s Distinguished Honor Award, the Arnold Memorial Award for leadership, motivation and mentoring and several superior honor awards. — Pia Lee-Brago