New NATO spokesperson, Canadian Tamil

[TamilNet, Friday, 23 January 2004, 15:47 GMT]
James Appathurai, 35, a Canadian Tamil, has been appointed as the spokesperson of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) Friday, Associated Press reported.

"Appathurai, 35., has worked in NATO's Political Affairs and Security Policy Division since 1998, most recently as deputy head of policy planning and speechwriting. He replaces another Canadian, Yves Brodeur, who returned to the Department of Foreign Affairs in Ottawa in September after 2 1/2 years as NATO spokesman. Before joining NATO, Appathurai worked for the CBC in Toronto and as a policy adviser with the Defence Department in Ottawa," the report said.

"His appointment was announced by Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, the Dutch former foreign minister who took over as NATO secretary general at the start of the year," the AP report added.