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Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confronts an elephant in the room as he heads on a seven-nation trip to America’s allies on Friday; They have congratulated President-elect Joe Biden on his victory and he certainly did not.
With President Donald Trump refusing to budge and making unsubstantiated accusations of fraud, Pompeo, one of his most loyal aides, has leaned on him.
“There will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration,” Pompeo told reporters Tuesday moments after announcing his trip, sparking a stir when critics accused the top US diplomat of breaking democratic norms to please the fickle. President.
World leaders have shown no doubt about the election, in which Biden was projected to topple Trump by 306-232 electoral votes, as well as a substantial lead in the popular vote.
Leaders who have called Biden in to congratulate him include French President Emmanuel Macron, who will see Pompeo in Paris on Monday.
Pompeo, in a Fox News interview, said such calls to Biden were not objectionable if he “just said ‘hi.’
“But make no mistake about it, we have a president, a secretary of state, a national security team at a time.”
A senior State Department official, asked whether Pompeo would insist to allies that Trump remain in power, said Pompeo has a “broad strategy” in the interests of the United States and that “he remains the Secretary of state”.
– Controversy to the end –
France, which like many US allies had strong disagreements with Trump on issues like climate change and trade with Iran, has no illusions that the Republican mogul will remain in power.
Macron is receiving Pompeo at the request of the secretary of state and “in full transparency with President-elect Joe Biden’s team,” a French official said, adding that contacts with Biden are “established and operational.”
Pompeo, who has mocked his Francophile Democratic predecessor John Kerry for his frequent trips for “fancy dinners” and “cocktails,” will make his first visit to Paris as secretary of state, in addition to accompanying Trump to a centennial ceremony. the World War. Shipping.
The conversation is not expected to be light. Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Friday he would raise the concerns of France, which has been hit by a series of jihadist attacks, to Trump’s plans to accelerate troop withdrawals from Afghanistan and Iraq.
Pompeo is heading from Paris to Istanbul, where his trip has already caused friction.
He has no reserved meetings with officials in Turkey, and the State Department official blames scheduling problems, despite the complex relationship between NATO allies on issues like Syria, maritime tensions with Greece and growing military cooperation. of Ankara with Russia.
Pompeo’s only announced meeting is with Bartholomew I of Constantinople, the spiritual leader of the Greek Orthodox world, to discuss religious freedom, a key issue for the evangelical Christian Pompeo.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the United States must first “look in the mirror” and address racism, hate crimes and Islamophobia at home.
– Angry Palestinians –
In Jerusalem, Pompeo will see Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is a close associate of Trump but who has congratulated Biden, mindful of preserving ties with the future president, who is expected to be more assertive in promoting rights. Palestinians.
According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz and the Axios news site, Pompeo will become the first secretary of state to visit one of Israel’s settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, which are considered illegal by virtually every other country, and will also tour the Golan Heights, whose annexation by Israel was recognized by Trump.
The reported visit was denounced by Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh, who said it would set a “dangerous precedent”.
Pompeo will also visit Saudi Arabia, on which Biden has vowed to push harder on human rights, as well as his fellow Gulf allies, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
In addition, he will visit Georgia, an ally of the United States that has also just experienced an election contested by the losing side.
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