Adm. Harry Harris, head of U.S. Pacific Command in Hawaii and President Donald Trump’s choice to be the next ambassador to Australia, is being diverted at the last minute to instead become ambassador to South Korea, multiple media sources reported.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee said on its website that Tuesday’s confirmation hearing for Harris’ appointment to Australia had been “postponed.”
Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo decided to move Harris to South Korea ahead of possible talks between Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, CNN said.
“This is obviously a surprise move but makes a lot of sense,” Ralph Cossa, president of the Pacific Forum, a Honolulu foreign policy think tank, said in an email. “There is no higher priority given the current turn of events than having a savvy ambassador in South Korea and Harry is an ideal choice given his deep knowledge of the security situation in Asia.”
The Washington Post, the first to report the switch, said Harris indicated a willingness to become the envoy to South Korea.
The diplomatic jobs have long been vacant in South Korea and Australia. Mark Knapper has been overseeing the U.S. Embassy in Seoul as charge d’affaires for 15 months.
The White House, in previously announcing Harris’ nomination for the Australia job, said he is a “highly decorated, combat-proven Naval officer with extensive knowledge, leadership and geo-political expertise in the Indo-Pacific region.”
Harris is a hard-liner against Chinese expansionism in the South China Sea and frequently faced the wrath of Beijing over his criticism of the rising Asian nation’s territorial claims and island-building in the disputed region.
Cossa, in a Pacific Forum newsletter Tuesday, noted this week’s expected meeting between the North’s Kim and South Korea President Moon Jae-in and an impending summit in late May or early June involving Kim and Trump.
The North’s long-term goal is likely the removal of U.S. forces from the peninsula and accompanying nuclear umbrella, but it seems to be primarily interested in the near-term lifting of sanctions and procurement of economic assistance, Cossa said.
Something to watch for in the North-South meeting is any reference to a missile and/or nuclear freeze, he said.
“The question is not so much will there be a freeze, but what will be frozen,” Cossa said. “Pyongyang has already announced a halt in missile and nuclear testing. But will Pyongyang accept the possibility of a freeze in its nuclear and missile programs?”
Australia, meanwhile, has been frustrated that the United States has not had an ambassador to that country since September 2016.
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull tweeted in February that it was “great” to see Harris’ nomination.
“I’m sure the Aussies are disappointed but also understand the criticality of filling the Korea position,” Cossa said. “The key now will be to come up with someone equally impressive to fill the Canberra position fast, like in the next few days.”
Harris, who is retiring, became head of Pacific Command, which covers about half the globe, on May 27, 2015.
Adm. Phil Davidson, the nominee to lead Pacific Command and the current head of the Navy’s Fleet Forces Command, testified last week before the Senate Armed Services Committee and is expected to be approved to lead the Hawaii-based command.
