Donald Trump has named US Pacific Commander Admiral Harry Harris as his pick to serve as the American ambassador to Australia, the White House has said in a statement.
Harris, a naval officer, has served in the military for 39 years and is in his seventh command assignment as head of the US Pacific Command, the White House said. He is the first Asian-American to achieve the rank of Admiral in the US Navy.
“A highly decorated, combat proven Naval officer with extensive knowledge, leadership and geo-political expertise in the Indo-Pacific region, he graduated from the US Naval Academy in 1978 and was designated a naval flight officer in 1979,” the White House statement said.
Vice Admiral Harry B. Harris, Jr graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy.
He was selected for the Navy’s Harvard/Tufts Program and earned a Masters in Public Administration degree at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
He was selected as an Arthur S. Moreau Scholar and studied international relations at Oxford and Georgetown Universities, earning a Master of Arts in National Security Studies from Georgetown.
Vice Admiral Harry B. Harris, Jr. has logged 44-hundred flight hours, including over 400 combat hours, in U.S. and foreign maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft.
The Vice Admiral’s personal decorations include three Defense Superior Service Medals, three Legion of Merit awards, two Bronze Stars, four Meritorious Service Medals, the Air Medal, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, five Navy Commendation Medals, the Navy Achievement Medal, and various campaign and unit decorations. Vice Admiral Harris is also a recipient of the Navy League’s Stephen Decatur Award for Operational Competence.