Biden recruits Obama adviser to take US policy lead on China
- Laura Rosenberger to become senior director for China at the National Security Council
- Rosenberger has been a vocal critic of Beijing’s domestic censorship about the coronavirus pandemic
Rosenberger, a senior fellow at the think tank the German Marshall Fund of the United States, said on Twitter on Thursday that she was humbled by the magnitude of the task and “privileged to once again serve the American people alongside an incredible team”.
Rosenberger was an adviser on foreign policy to another former secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, during her 2016 presidential run before heading the Alliance for Securing Democracy, an initiative founded within the GMF in 2017 to deter interference in US politics.
At the alliance, Rosenberger initially focused on Russian interference in the 2016 elections, and later became a vocal critic of China’s behaviour in the US and other democratic societies.
Many of Biden’s foreign policy picks have extensive experience of dealing with China, and few expect them to be soft on Beijing.
Campbell, the chief architect of Obama’s “pivot to Asia” strategy, is expected to take up a new position for Asia policies. Katherine Tai, a Mandarin speaker and Obama’s chief counsel for China trade enforcement, will become Biden’s top trade negotiator.