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CIA chief Burns: President's vote of confidence
Photo: KEN CEDENO / REUTERS
US President Joe Biden gives the head of the foreign intelligence agency CIA, William Burns, a seat in the federal cabinet. Biden announced this in a written statement on Friday. Burns had always provided him with clear and straightforward analyses that put the security of the American people first. The CIA plays an essential role in his administration's national security decisions, especially at a critical time.
The U.S. cabinet includes the various federal ministers as well as other leading members of the administration, including Biden's chief of staff, Jeff Zients, and the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield. Also sitting at the table is intelligence coordinator Avril Haines. So far, however, no single representative of any of the U.S. intelligence agencies has been represented there.
Burns' appointment to the round is seen more as a symbolic act, but at the same time as a sign of the important role he played for Biden in the crises with Russia or China in recent months. Burns said in a statement that he was honored.
phw/dpa