KATHMANDU: Newly-appointed US Ambassador for Nepal, Dean R Thompson, is arriving in Kathmandu next month to assume office.

Thompson was sworn in as US ambassador to Nepal in Washington DC on Friday.

US President Joe Biden had proposed Thompson as the new ambassador to Nepal. He currently serves as the State Department’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs.

Speaking in a hearing in the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee after his name was nominated for the Nepal job, Thompson talked about the growing Chinese presence in Nepal.

Meanwhile, Randy W Berry is returning to the US on Sunday after completing his four-year term in Nepal.

Thompson, who is succeeding Berry in Kathmandu, is also a seasoned US diplomat like Berry.

He was the Deputy Chief of Mission of the US Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Before that, he was the Deputy Chief of Mission (and Charge d’affaires, a.i.) of the US Embassy in Bucharest, Romania.

He also served as the US Consulate General in Kolkata, India. Thompson also served as Economic Counselor of the US Embassy, Colombo, Sri Lanka and held positions in the US embassies in Paraguay and Bangladesh.

Thompson earned his BA degree from Wittenberg University, Springfield, Ohio and his MA degree from the University of Maryland School of Public Affairs. He is the recipient of multiple State Department performance awards.