WAS SHINGTON (AP) – After refusing to acknowledge President Donald Trump’s loss in last week’s election, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is leaving on a tour of Europe and the Middle East on Friday, in countries where leaders have all congratulated former Vice President Joe Biden on his victory.
The seven-nation trip aims to address the Trump administration’s outreach priorities, particularly its anti-China and anti-Iran policies, and will include visits to Israeli settlements in the West Bank that could have been avoided by previous secretaries of state.
But general foreign policy issues are likely to dominate global politics from an extraordinary moment: most people around the world have accepted the US election results, while top US diplomats – as well as most of its president and his Republican Party – have – Don’t have.
Pompeo’s trip comes days after a journalist’s question was denied and eyebrows raised. “There will be a smooth transition to the second Trump administration,” he said of the president’s transition. He appeared to speak in a ridiculous manner and said in a more serious tone that the world should be assured that the state department would be functioning and successful with the state executive and the president taking office on January 20. But in those interviews with the media, he did not acknowledge who Biden would be next president.
Pompeo’s weekly tour takes him to France, Turkey, Georgia, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Every leader of those countries has publicly congratulated Biden.
Four of those countries – France, Turkey, Georgia and Qatar – have loose ties to the Trump administration and it is unclear whether Pompeo will have a public engagement with any of their leaders. Pompeo has a notoriously violent relationship with the press, and it is unclear whether he intends to take questions from reporters.
The administration’s relations with Turkey have been particularly strained since the purchase of NATO’s allied Russian missile defense system, and meetings with Turkish officials at the Pompeo stop in Istanbul will not be included. Instead, Pompeo will meet with religious leaders to highlight his promotion of religious freedom.
Palestinian officials, who have been ousted by the Trump administration, have condemned plans to visit Pompeo’s Pasagot West Bank settlement. Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shatayeh tweeted on Friday that “this dangerous precedent legitimizes the colonies (and) hits international legitimacy / UN Rise.”
By refusing to confess to Trump And orders to cabinet agencies not to co-operate with the Biden transition team, the State Department not being involved in facilitating Biden’s calls to foreign leaders, According to officials familiar with the process.
Pompeo’s ardent support for Trump, who has made the claim without evidence The election was marred by fraud, threatening to damage America’s position in declaring other countries’ democratic shortcomings.
On Thursday, Pompeo weighed in on Hong Kong’s legislature, and he has condemned alleged electoral problems in Belarus, Tanzania and Ivory Coast in recent weeks. On Friday, he congratulated the Caribbean nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines for the recent elections.
Yet, in his news conference on Tuesday, Pompeo refuted with scandal the question of whether Trump’s futile opposition also created problems for U.S. credibility. “You asked a question that is ridiculous,” he replied. “This department pays close attention to ensuring that elections around the world are safe and secure and free and fair and my officers risk their lives to make sure they happen.”
Biden has already spoken to leaders from Australia, Australia, Canada, Japan and South Korea and posted congratulatory notes on social media and elsewhere.
However, Pompeo said he would continue as if nothing had changed.
“I am the Secretary of State.” “I get calls from all over the world. These people are watching our election. They understand that we have a legal process. They understand that this takes time. “
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