Pompeo

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo defended the Trump administration’s handling of the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Wednesday, stressing Saudi Arabia’s importance as a US ally. Pompeo repeated his assertion that there was no direct evidence linking Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the Oct. 2 murder of Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey, despite a CIA assessment it was likely he ordered the killing. CIA Director Gina Haspel was due to brief leaders of the House of…

WASHINGTON: United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday promised strong ties with Britain if the longtime ally heads for a complete split with the European Union. Speaking as Prime Minister Theresa May postponed a parliamentary vote she looked likely to lose on a softer Brexit deal, Pompeo said the United States and Britain work "incredibly closer together across every front of our relationship," including trade. "If there's a hard Brexit, I remain very confident the United States and the United Kingdom will…

BEIJING: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Chinese Foreign Minister and State Councillor Wang Yi aired their grievances in the open on Monday during a brief visit to Beijing by Washington’s top diplomat, amid worsening relations. While the exchange included typical diplomatic pleasantries, and the two officials emphasized the need for cooperation, their remarks before journalists at the start of their meeting at Beijing’s Diaoyutai State Guest House were unusually pointed. “Recently, as the US side has been…

NEW YORK: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo brought the foreign ministers from feuding Gulf powerhouses Saudi Arabia and Qatar together under the same roof Friday as he hosted a meeting of Washington's Arab allies. "We all have a shared interest in a wide range of security issues -- defeating ISIS, Al-Qaeda, other terrorist groups, bringing peace and stability in Syria," he said at the meeting with counterparts from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) along with Egypt and Jordan. And in a statement issued…

NEW DELHI: India is likely to give its approval to a landmark military communications agreement with the United States during high-level talks on Thursday, two Indian government defence sources said, laying the ground for Washington to sell sensitive defence equipment. A first source said the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) was discussed in a meeting of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet committee on security on Wednesday evening, hours ahead of a meeting between the defence and…

KABUL: At least 20 people have been killed including two Afghan journalists after twin blasts at a Kabul wrestling club on Wednesday that left another 70 wounded, officials said, in the latest assault on the capital. An hour after a suicide bomber blew himself up inside the sports hall, a car packed with explosives detonated as journalists and security forces gathered at the scene, police spokesman Hashmat Stanikzai said. At least four journalists were wounded in the second explosion, media support group NAI said.…

ISLAMABAD: Briefing media after a meeting with a US delegation led by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Wednesday said that, contrary to what a section of media reported, the US delegation didn't make any "do more" demand, ARY News reported. The minister maintained that the meeting with the high-level US delegation was held in a "positive environment" and helped the two countries understand each other's viewpoint over Afghan conflict, terrorism and other outstanding issues. He…

WASHINGTON: Former US Ambassador to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad will join the State Department as an adviser on Afghanistan, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday as he headed to Pakistan to discuss Islamabad’s role in helping to end the Afghan conflict. “Ambassador Khalilzad is going to join the State Department team to assist us in the reconciliation effort, so he will come on and be the State Department’s lead person for that purpose,” Pompeo told US pool reporters traveling with him. Known by many in…

WASHINGTON: The United States will continue to hold accountable those responsible for what he described as the “abhorrent ethnic cleansing” of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Saturday. Pompeo’s statement came on the one year anniversary of the conflict in western Myanmar’s Rakhine state that drove more than 700,000 Rohingya from their homes into neighboring Bangladesh. “A year ago, following deadly militant attacks, security forces responded by launching abhorrent ethnic cleansing…

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Friday said that Pakistan wants friendly relations with all countries including the neighbouring India but the environment is not conducive for fruitful talks, ARY News reported. Addressing media at the Foreign Office, Qureshi maintained that the two countries have no other option but to resolve all outstanding issues including the core issue of Kashmir through dialogue. "The PM in his first address had told India that if they take one step, we will take two and…