The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted unanimously on Thursday to approve the nomination of the current US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke to be the next US ambassador to China.

Gary Locke [file photo]

Locke was formally nominated by US President Barack Obama on March 9 as the next US ambassador to China.

He hasn't encountered any opposition since Obama nominated him for the post, according to a Politics Wires report.

The Senate has not revealed a date for the nomination to be voted upon. If confirmed by the Senate, he will become the first Chinese-American ambassador to China.