Coleman lauds naming of Somalia envoy

05/17/2007

By Brady Averill,
Star Tribune
May 17, 2007


WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice appointed a special envoy for Somalia today, something Minnesota's senators have been pressing for years.

The United States has not had an ambassador to Somalia since 1991 when the U.S. Embassy was evacuated and hasn't had any presence there for over a decade.

But that changes with the appointment of Special Envoy to Somalia John Yates, who currently leads the Somalia Unit at the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, as a coordinator for Somalia policy. He will work with representatives of Somalia's Transititional Federal Government to help establish a stable government there. The new role will give him more authority and he will likely have more staff.

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