Underscoring the importance of diplomacy in resolving major global issues, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has called for a strong State Department to achieve America’s foreign policy goals.
In his first major address at the State Department, Mr. Pompeo on Friday said that despite having “strong relationship” with many allies, the U.S. still needed to address the issues of North Korea and Iran, among others.
“..there’s enormous diplomatic effort to continue to keep the pressure on North Korea and bring them to the negotiating table, to a place where we can successfully eliminate the threat from Kim Jong-un’s nuclear arsenal,” Mr. Pompeo said.
Mr. Pompeo met Mr. Kim last month in Pyongyang, in the build-up to a summit between the North Korean leader and Mr. Trump, the date and location for which have been decided and “will be announced soon”.
Speaking about the U.S.’ allies in Europe, Mr. Pompeo said apart from the occasional and minor hiccups, these nations had interests similar to America’s.
“We’re blessed to have so many allies with strong relationships. There are, of course, rough times and places that we disagree. But these countries share our values and our interests, and we all have a common effort in ensuring prosperity for our nations moving forward,” he said.
Mr. Pompeo called for “strong diplomatic efforts” in the Middle East, especially towards Iran to prevent its “destabilising behaviour“.
“We need strong diplomatic efforts there as well to prevent Iran’s destabilising behaviour in Syria, in Yemen, and across the region. We have to tackle the threat from jihadist terror and from places with really weak governance,” said Mr. Pompeo.
“These are all great challenges, but I’m confident that our team can develop strategies and diplomatic footprints capable of resolving them,” he said.
Mr. Trump is to take a decision on the Iranian nuclear deal on May 12. He has repeatedly criticised the seven-party agreement and long threatened to walk away from the landmark deal unless its European signatories and Congress reconcile his concerns.
America’s foreign policy, Mr. Pompeo argued, got to be pragmatic while still remaining principled and agile enough to respond to changing circumstances yet anchored in the fundamental ideals and values that ground the nation’s history.
Following his remarks, Mr. Pompeo took part in a memorial ceremony to honour those who lost their lives in service to the country.
