By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter

Kurt Campbell, a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for Asia and the Pacific, is expected to be named as assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, reports said Friday.

He will replace Christopher Hill, who has concurrently served as chief U.S. envoy to the six-party talks to end North Korea's nuclear weapons programs, they said.

Campbell has served as chief executive officer of the Center for New American Security (CNAS) since January 2007. He worked as a key policy advisor to President-elect Barack Obama's transition team.

Jeffrey A. Bader, director of the China Initiative and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, is expected to take over as head of the National Security Council's bureau on Asian affairs, according to reports.

Wendy Sherman, a former North Korea policy coordinator of the State Department, is favored to become a chief advisor to Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton, the reports said.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr