US: Ackerman appointed chairman of Subcommittee on Middle East and South Asia

US Representative Gary Ackerman (Democrat-New York) was on Tuesday formally selected as chairman of the Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia.

The subcommittee, a key panel of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has jurisdiction over United States policy towards all countries in the two regions, including important US allies Israel and India.

Its purview extends over contentious hotspots such as Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"I am honoured and delighted that my colleagues have selected me to lead such an important subcommittee especially at this critical time for the two regions," said Ackerman. "I look forward to tackling the important issues of both regions, which are of vital interest to the United States," he added.

"Among our top priorities will be the resurrection of the committee's constitutionally mandated oversight responsibilities," he said.

"For far too long, the Republican leadership shirked its obligations by failing to scrutinise the president's foreign policy. We will now do our job," Ackerman said.

Chairman Ackerman intends to examine US policy in both regions, including the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Iran's support for terrorism as well as their drive to acquire nuclear weapons and Pakistan's cooperation in the war on terrorism.

Ackerman, who most recently served as the Ranking Democrat of the Middle East and Central Asia Subcommittee, has long been active on issues affecting the Middle East and South Asia.

Ackerman also worked with President George W Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to win Congressional passage of the US-India civilian nuclear energy agreement, which was enacted into law last month.

Congressman Ackerman was elected to a 13th term in the House of Representatives last November running unopposed. He represents the Fifth Congressional District of New York encompassing the north shore of Queens and Long Island.