Irish-born diplomat recognised as an Outstanding American by Choic

An Irish-born diplomat will be recognised as an Outstanding American by Choice at a ceremony in New York today.

United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Samantha Power will receive the honour from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) at a naturalisation ceremony in which 15 other candidates originating from countries including Australia, Colombia, Iraq and Pakistan will also become US citizens.

Ms Power was born in London but spent the first nine years of her life in Dublin before she moved to America with her mother and brother, first in Pittsburgh and later in Atlanta.

She graduated from Yale University in 1992 and spent time working in Bosnia before going to study at Harvard Law School.

She later won a Pulitzer Prize for her book A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide.

She began working with the Obama administration in 2009 as special assistant to the president in charge of human rights and multilateral affairs on the National Security Council and was appointed to the UN in August 2013.

Since 2006, USCIS has recognised 130 individuals from approximately 50 countries and Ambassador Power will be the 9th Outstanding by Choice honoree in New York City.