Bush nominates APEC envoy as ambassador to Vietnam

WASHINGTON, May 25 (Reuters) President George W Bush has nominated career diplomat Michael Michalak to be the US ambassador to Vietnam, the White House said in a statement today.

Michalak, a 32-year veteran of the State Department who speaks Chinese, Japanese and French, had served as the US envoy to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum since August 2005, according to his official biography.

Communist Hanoi, which hosted the 2006 APEC leaders' summit, has rapidly deepened trade ties with Washington since the formal battlefield foes normalized diplomatic relations in 1995, but the two countries have disputes over human rights. US Senate confirmation is required.

REUTERS DKS PM0501