Bush picks U.S. envoy to East Timor

Bush picks U.S. envoy to East Timor

UNITED STATES: President George W. Bush said on Tuesday he planned to nominate a congressional aide to be ambassador to East Timor.

The White House said in a statement Bush tapped Grover Joseph Rees, a former law professor who is currently counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on International Relations, to represent the United States in newly independent East Timor.

Rees previously served on a House subcommittee that dealt with human rights and was the general counsel to the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service from 1991 to 1993.

The nomination is subject to the approval of the U.S. Senate. --Reuters