Tibetan PM welcomes Kerry's nomination as Secretary of State

"Senator Kerry is a long term friend of Tibet and brings extensive foreign policy credentials. He has a deep understanding of the Tibet issue. I wish success in his new role," said Lobsang Sangay, prime minister of Tibetan government-in-exile, here today.

"I hope he will build on the efforts of Secretary Hillary Clinton, elevate the Tibet issue and human rights, and fully implement the Tibetan Policy Act (a 'middle-way' approach formulated by the Dalai Lama and endorsed by the Americans that favours autonomy for Tibet within China)," Sangay said.

Kerry has been a long-standing supporter of Tibet, and has helped steer two Tibet resolutions in the US Senate in 2012 alone including one in March.

Under his chairmanship of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), the Senate passed a resolution expressing support for the people of Tibet and calling on the Chinese government to end its "repressive" policies towards Tibetans.

Earlier, he was also one of the four senators who wrote a letter to the then President George W Bush calling on administration to take specific actions to help resolve the crisis in Tibet. The measures included making a presidential visit to Tibet during the 2008 Beijing Olympics, establishing a consulate in Tibetan capital Lhasa and calling for wider access to the region for international humanitarian officials and journalists.

The Secretary of State-designate has met Dalai Lama on several occasions and twice the incumbent PM Sangay.

Kerry has served in the United States' Senate for twenty-eight years, and has been the Chairman of the SFRC since 2009.