News-Letter

April 24th, 2009

SAIS Alumnus Nominated to State Dept.

Robert O. Blake (SAIS ‘84) was nominated to the serve in the State Department, Friday.
Photo: Eranga Ayawardena / Associated Press

President Obama nominated Robert O. Blake to serve as Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs. Blake graduated from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in 1984 and is currently the United States Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Republic of the Maldives. After graduating from SAIS, Blake joined the Foreign Service, working in United States embassies in Tunisia, Algeria, Nigeria and Egypt.

If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Blake will work with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on matters in the region, including Afghanistan and Pakistan. His appointment comes at the same time Obama and Clinton push a reluctant Congress for an additional $84.4 billion of military funding in Afghanistan. As of now, Blake is expected to be easily confirmed.

Other SAIS alumni in federal agencies include Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner who graduated one year after Blake.
–Michael Szeto
blogs.jhunewsletter.com

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