For those who decried Rex Tillerson’s 14-month tenure as secretary of state, who wanted a more aggressive advocate in foreign affairs and more of the empty slots at Foggy Bottom filled, be careful what you wish for. Because you now have Mike Pompeo. Tillerson will not, as some claim, be remembered as the worst secretary…
Senator Chuck Schumer (D, NY) says Tillerson’s firing indicates that the Trump administration is disintegrating. I understand why Senator Schumer sees it that way, expecially following all the other dismissals and resignations. I see it differently. The firing of Secretary of State Tillerson, the movement of CIA Director Pompeo to Secretary of State, and the…
The time is right to take stock of where we are in the US foreign policy. Rumors about State Secretary Tillerson being at odds with President Trump had been swirling since last October but nothing had portended his dismissal on March 13. It was the most unusual way of firing the fourth most important official…
Emiratis are publicly celebrating and Qataris are privately mourning, but Donald Trump’s sacking of Rex Tillerson is unlikely to shift US policy on the row between Saudi Arabia, the UAE and their regional rival Qatar, according to analysts. On Tuesday, Trump announced on Twitter he was firing Tillerson, citing the now former secretary of state’s…
As one nuclear crisis winds down in Asia (maybe) is President Donald Trump laying the foundations for a new nuclear crisis in the Middle East? On Thursday, March 8, came the surprise news that President Donald Trump had accepted an invitation to meet with Kim Jong-un of North Korea. South Korean National Security Advisor Chung…
Long reviled in the Western media as a pariah state with devilish ambitions, Pyongyang is showing real savvy on the political stage in an attempt to lure Trump to the negotiating table. Can Kim and Trump agree to disagree? Last week, a South Korean envoy arrived at the White House bearing a surprise invitation for…
