Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday evening dismissed Iran’s claim to control the Strait of Hormuz and the entire Persian Gulf. Pompeo promised that the United States would continue to protect freedom of navigation in those international waterways.
China’s state-run Global Times posted a furious editorial on Sunday denouncing the Trump administration for canceling a planned trip to North Korea by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) published a report on Monday stating there is no indication North Korea is truly abandoning its nuclear weapons program. The U.N. watchdog agency said the few steps taken by Pyongyang so far have been largely theatrical and do not represent a meaningful dismantling of the rogue Communist nation’s nuclear capability.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani announced a ceasefire plan on Sunday, but the Taliban promptly kidnapped 170 people from buses in an act of highway banditry. On Monday morning, Ghani all but abandoned the ceasefire and instructed his armed forces to continue operations against the Taliban until the terrorist group scales back its violent activities.
Brian Hook, State Department director of policy planning and head of a special action group on Iran created this week, told a press conference on Thursday that China will not be exempt from penalties if it continues buying Iranian oil after the second, and much more strict, rounds of renewed U.S. sanctions on Iran go into effect in November.
“If you’d like, you can stay. If you’d like, you can leave,” President Trump told reporters. “Freedom of the press,” he added.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says it is possible for sanctions on Iran that were reimposed Monday to be lifted, but noted that it will take “enormous change” by the Islamic Republic, which must “behave like a normal country.”
Venezuelan police announced six arrests on Sunday with the promise of more to come following an alleged assassination attempt against President Nicolas Maduro using explosive-laden drones. Maduro ally President Evo Morales of Bolivia accused the U.S. government of masterminding the plot, a charge swiftly denied by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton.
Contents: UN report: North Korea nuclear and missile development continues; John Bolton and Marco Rubio describe administration’s North Korea strategy
The United States reimposed sanctions against Iran on Monday, as presaged by President Donald Trump’s withdrawal from his predecessor Barack Obama’s nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
China’s state-run Global Times did not enjoy Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s speech to the Indo-Pacific Business Forum on Monday. A Tuesday editorial by the communist paper responded by accusing the United States of playing “power games” in the Indo-Pacific region.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told the Indo-Pacific Business Forum on Monday that business engagement and “free and open” trade are major elements of the Trump administration’s strategic vision for the region. Although he mentioned China only in passing, Secretary Pompeo’s remarks included a clear warning to regional powers about the perils of partnering with Beijing.
Wednesday at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) told Secretary of State Mike Pompeo he was before a group of senators “filled with serious doubts” about the Trump White House on foreign policy. Corker said,”It’s our hope you will
Iran’s state-controlled Fars News Agency claimed in a “report” Monday that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) is planning to overthrow his father in an elaborate coup.
National Security Adviser John Bolton entered the escalating war of words between President Donald Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Monday by confirming that Trump is prepared to make Iran “pay a price” for any “negative” actions it takes.
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Friday called NBC News’ report that the Pentagon was in “damage-control” mode to reassure NATO allies after President Trump’s visit “fiction.”
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Iran is treating the United States with “much more respect” since he pulled out of the nuclear deal. He expected Tehran to crumble under sanctions and negotiate a new deal soon.
The bishops of England and Wales have urged the UK government to begin publishing an annual religious freedom report similar to that produced each year by the U.S. State Department to help “strengthen the UK’s work in this area.”
North Korean media reported on Tuesday that dictator Kim Jong-un paid a visit to Samjiyon County on the Chinese border, where he dispensed “field guidance” to the local agriculture and tourism industries. His sage advice included telling architects to build houses that don’t fall off the side of Mount Paektu and telling factory workers to “ensure the quality of processed potato foods in production and thus raise the quality of potato production.”
China’s state-run Global Times firmly took the North Korean regime’s side against Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in editorials on Sunday and Monday, supporting Pyongyang’s denunciation of the message from Washington as a “unilateral and gangster-like demand for denuclearization.”
President Donald Trump interjected on Monday in the debate about the state of recent Korean peninsula denuclearization negotiations between the U.S. and North Korea, pointing again to China’s influence.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made a surprise visit to Afghanistan on Monday while returning from his trip to Asia. At a news conference with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, Pompeo stressed that Kabul must take the lead in peace talks with the Taliban.
North Korean state media suddenly began depicting dictator Kim Jong-un covered in dirt this week, in a comically obvious bid to make the notoriously delicate leader appear hard-working and deeply in touch with working people.
National Security Adviser John Bolton said on Sunday the U.S. has a plan to dismantle North Korea’s nuclear, biological, chemical, and ballistic missile programs within a year if Pyongyang is serious about meeting its commitment to denuclearize.
A senior defense official giving a background briefing to reporters on Sunday stated that the Trump administration will soon present North Korea with a “specific timeline” for denuclearization filled with “specific asks,” and will judge Pyongyang’s degree of “good faith” by how well the timeline is received.
In a speech at the Heritage Foundation on May 21, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo outlined a list of 12 conditions Iran must meet to reach a new nuclear agreement with the United States. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif, one of the lead architects of the nuclear deal Tehran struck with former President Barack Obama, responded this week by lashing out at Pompeo, dismissing his demands as “insulting,” and accusing President Donald Trump of “erratic behavior.”
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley are expected to announce the withdrawal of the United States from the U.N. Human Rights Council on Tuesday afternoon, according to various reports.
A media mouthpiece for the North Korean regime operating in Japan asserted on Wednesday that Kim Jong-un’s full commitment to “denuclearization” does not mean he plans to give up his nuclear weapons and that it is fake news to claim it does.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced at a press conference with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing on Thursday that China will maintain sanctions against North Korea “until such time as denuclearization is, in fact, complete.”
TEL AVIV – Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Attorney General Jeff Sessions have been urged by two members of Congress to shutter the Washington D.C. bureau of the Palestine Liberation Organization, which endorses “flagrant violations” of U.S. law such as payments to terrorists.
California Democrat Ro Khanna came out in strong support of President Trump’s diplomatic efforts with North Korea on Friday, breaking with his party’s leadership.
Germany, France, and Britain joined the EU to plead for special “ally” status to exempt them from U.S. trade sanctions on Iran.
Hong Kong held a huge candlelight vigil in Victoria Park on Monday to mark the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. The event displeases Beijing, which has done what it can to suppress attendance and warn participants away from incendiary criticism of the Communist government.
European leaders talked a great deal about keeping the Iran nuclear deal alive after President Donald Trump announced U.S. withdrawal three weeks ago, but the news turned with remarkable speed to European business interests pulling out of Iranian deals on the eve of American sanctions taking effect. The Wall Street Journal worried on Monday that Russia and China will step forward to profit from Europe’s departure.
The U.S. embassy to China issued a health alert on Wednesday to all Americans living in the country after a U.S. citizen working at the consulate in Guangzhou reported symptoms disturbingly similar to the “sonic attack” victims at the U.S. embassy in Cuba in 2016.
Fox News reports: As protests continued for a third day in the southern Iranian city of Kazerun, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tweeted his support for the protesters in that country.
Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Recep Akdag said on Tuesday that it is “completely inconceivable to return Afrin back to the control of the Syrian regime” after Turkey invaded the northern border region in January.
Appearing on Fox News Sunday this weekend, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the United States will “provide security assurances” to North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un at his summit with President Donald Trump in June, including a promise not to overthrow the Kim regime.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called for unity among the Gulf states against the “common challenge” of Iran during his trip to Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the Trump administration “has its eyes wide open” when dealing with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Partial transcript as follows: KARL: So, that was obviously before John Bolton
