White House appoints Uygur-American Elnigar Iltebir to top China policy advisory job
- Appointment is a ‘poke in the eye’ to Beijing and could signal a stronger focus on human rights in Washington, analysts say
The White House has appointed a Uygur-American academic to a top position on China policy in a move meant to put more pressure on China over mass detentions in the far western region of Xinjiang, analysts said.
The appointment comes as Beijing faces intense international pressure over reports that up to one million Uygurs and other Muslims have been held in camps in Xinjiang, camps that Beijing says are vocational training centres.
It also comes as China and the United States remain deadlocked in a trade war after more than a year of negotiations and tit-for-tat tariffs.
Citing serving and former American officials, US-based Foreign Policy magazine reported on Thursday that Elnigar Iltebir, a Harvard-educated academic and daughter of a prominent Uygur intellectual, was appointed the US National Security Council’s director for China.
In the role, Iltebir will advise the president and senior White House officials on US policy towards China and coordinate the implementation of that policy among government departments and agencies.