Biden chooses veteran diplomat Burns as CIA director | News, Sports, Jobs vindy.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from vindy.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Several intelligence community sources said Monday that they expect Mr. Burns will push hard to reduce U.S. reliance on violent tactics like the January 2020 strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, and instead advocate for expanded back-channel diplomacy and communication with the Iranians and others.
The selection triggered concern among some foreign policy hawks on Monday, but former high-level intelligence officials were quick to rally behind Mr. Burns, claiming his deep institutional and geopolitical experience have already earned him widespread respect at the CIA.
The 64-year-old diplomat was known to liaise with the intelligence agency during his 33-year career at the State Department, during which he served under both Republican and Democratic presidents. He is reportedly fluent in Arabic, Russian, and French from his Foreign Service days. He retired from government services six years ago to run the Carnegie Endowment of International Peace think tank.
William Burns, a highly regarded diplomat with vast foreign policy experience and service in both Democratic and Republican administrations, was chosen Monday as President-elect Joe Biden’s director of the CIA.
It was a surprise pick but one likely to win broad approval both within and outside