James B. Cunningham will assume his responsibilities as consul general of the United States of America in Hong Kong beginning in August 2005, according to a press release of the US Consulate General in Hong Kong on Friday.

According to the press release, as consul general, he will be responsible for the Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions. Most recently ambassador and deputy US permanent representative to the United Nations, he served as acting permanent representative from January to September 2001.

Cunningham holds the rank of Career Minister in the Foreign Service.

Ambassador Cunningham has spent much of his career working on European and security affairs, with broad experience in multilateral diplomacy. After early tours in Stockholm, Washington, Rome and the US Mission to NATO, in 1988 incoming NATO Secretary General Manfred Woerner appointed him as deputy chief of staff and in January 1989 as chief of staff.

From 1990 t0 1999, Cunningham became deputy political counselor at the US Mission to the United Nations, director of the State Department's Office of European Security and Political Affairs and deputy chief of the US Embassy in Rome.

Cunningham was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania and graduated magna cum laude from Syracuse University, with degrees in political science and psychology. He is married to Leslie Genier of Mineville, New York. They have two children.

His languages are Italian, French and Spanish, and he is studying Mandarin. He is the recipient of the Department's Superior, Merit and Performance awards.

Source: Xinhua