The officials made the remarks after the AIT Taipei office announced the previous day that Stanton, a career diplomat whose most recent assignment was as deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, has been selected to serve as the new top U.S. representative to Taiwan.

Stanton will succeed Stephen M. Young who will return to the United States after three years of service in Taipei.

According to the AIT statement, Stanton will assume his new duties in Taipei in August after consultations in Washington, D.C.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said Stanton is a seasoned outstanding diplomat and an appropriate choice for the post. He is versed in Asian affairs and fully understands the current state of relations across the Taiwan Strait, the officials added.

With his fair understanding of Taiwan through his experience of studying Mandarin Chinese in Taipei between 1986 and 1987, the officials went on, Stanton is expected to faithfully reflect the U.S. government's policy toward Taiwan and further strengthen bilateral interaction and cooperation in various fields on the basis of mutual trust and a long-term friendly relationship.

Stanton was born in New Jersey and was educated at Fordham University, where he received his B.A., and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he received an M.A. and Ph.D. He also studied at Albert-Ludwigs University in Freiburg, Germany.

Prior to his assignment in Seoul, Stanton served both as Charge d'Affaires ad interim and as deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Canberra, Australia.

Stanton's assignments within the Department of State also included deputy director of the Office of Chinese and Mongolian Affairs and special assistant for East Asia and Pacific affairs for the under secretary for political affairs. His overseas assignments include language studies in Taiwan, tours in Lebanon and in Pakistan, and two tours in Beijing.

The Taiwan Relations Act of 1979, a U.S. law, designated the American Institute in Taiwan as the instrumentality to conduct the commercial, cultural and other relations between the United States and Taiwan in the absence of formal diplomatic ties.