Obama Appoints A Nigerian, Adewale Adeyemo, As Deputy National Security Adviser(Photo)

President Barack Obama has tapped Adewale “Wally”

Adeyemo, who served in top roles at the Treasury

Department, to succeed Caroline Atkinson as his deputy

national security adviser for international economic affairs.

Ms. Atkinson has served in her current post since June

2013, a position that includes coordinating U.S.

participation in the annual summits of the Group of 20 and

Group of Seven countries. Ms. Atkinson also played key

roles in the recently concluded climate negotiations in

Paris and in pushing the White House’s trade agenda,

including the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement.

Mr. Adeyemo, 34, joined the White House’s National

Economic Council as deputy director this fall from the

Treasury, where he served most recently as the deputy

chief of staff to Secretary Jacob Lew. He was the

Treasury’s lead negotiator on the currency agreement that

was part of the Pacific trade deal.

Mr. Adeyemo also worked on Treasury’s response to crises

in Ukraine and Greece and in 2010 was one of the first

officials charged with standing up the Consumer Financial

Protection Bureau.

In a statement, Mr. Obama thanked Ms. Atkinson for her

service and said he was grateful that Mr. Adeyemo would

carry on her work. Mr. Adeyemo had been nominated by

Mr. Obama to serve as assistant Treasury secretary for

international markets and development, but a White

House official said Mr. Adeyemo had asked the president

to withdraw the nomination given his new role.

Mr. Lew said that Mr. Adeyemo had “developed a network

of international relationships in economic offices around

the world to promote U.S. interests effectively.”

Former Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said Mr.

Adeyemo, who joined the administration in 2009, was a

“natural diplomat with a great feel for policy.”

The position has served as a springboard to even higher

profile international finance posts. Michael Froman, who is

currently the U.S. trade representative, held the post

under both Mr. Obama and President Bill Clinton.

Federal Reserve governor Lael Brainard, who previously

served as a senior Treasury official in the Obama

administration, held the post in the Clinton

administration.