The Biden administration wants to fill the role with someone who has extensive diplomatic experience and Burns meets the criteria, the sources said, but noted that announcements about any ambassadorial appointments are likely to be a way out.
Diplomats and regional experts have stressed the importance of influencing all those appointed as ambassadors to influence President Joe Biden.
“The most important thing I think for an ambassador is to have a good relationship with the president and to have the ability to communicate directly with the president and the key people around him,” said Bonnie Glaser, a senior adviser. for Asia and the director of the China Power project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“It is important that the person also has access to Xi Jinping,” she added.
In addition to the decision on an envoy to China, the administration must also fill the many other vacancies in the diplomatic corps, where career officials have been demoted and scrutinized by the Trump administration.
Among those considered for other ambassadorial posts is former Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel for Japan; former Biden national security adviser Julie Smith for NATO; former representative Jane Harman for France; and former ambassador Mark Gitenstein for the European Union.
Blinken stressed the importance of career diplomats
Blinken spoke about the importance of career diplomats and the need for strengthening U.S. diplomacy. There is an expectation that Biden will return to a more traditional mix of political and career appointments for the ambassadorial posts – a move from the previous government that relied heavily on political choices, some of which were unqualified.
“I am determined to put our career people in positions of responsibility and leadership, and I am absolutely determined that politics will not get into this building,” Blinken told NBC News in early February.
A senior US diplomat told CNN: ‘What we hear is a constant commitment that there will be fewer political appointments than Trump … and a commitment that everyone will be qualified and that people will not be nominated just because they are not donors. “They added that they do expect some donors to choose.
But the Biden team is expected to be weeks away from making any announcements about ambassadorial choices, sources said. They plan to announce the rest of the senior state department positions before moving on to ambassadors, a senior U.S. diplomat and a source familiar with the discussions said.
Last week, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Biden had not received a memorandum to make decisions on ambassadors. She also said she was not sure if the Biden administration would nominate any ambassadors by March.
Until decisions are made on the political ambassadors, the career ambassadors cannot move in place.
“The Department of State needs the White House to tell them which ambassadors will be filled by politicians and which state can fill with career people,” the senior U.S. diplomat told CNN. “And until the White House staffing office forwards the list to Secretary Blinken, there is no possibility of moving names up.”
CNN reached out to the State Department and White House for comment.
This story was updated on Wednesday with additional reporting.