Pompeo to travel to Mideast, Brussels as US top diplomat

WASHINGTON, April 26 (KUNA) -- US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will travel to Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel and Belgium in his first foreign trip as Secretary of State, US State Department official said Thursday.
State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a statement that Pompeo will travel to Brussels, Riyadh, Jerusalem and Amman from April 26-30.
"The Secretary looks forward to meeting key Allies and partners on his first official trip as Secretary of State," she affirmed.
She noted that in Brussels, Pompeo will meet with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and participate in the NATO Foreign Ministerial, "during which Allies will discuss preparations for July's NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government meeting." "The Secretary will then travel to the Middle East, where he will meet with Saudi, Israeli, and Jordanian leaders to discuss critical regional and bilateral issues," she added.
In a separate statement earlier today, Nauert said that Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito swore in Pompeo in the Supreme Court. The Senate confirmed today Pompeo as secretary of state to succeed Rex Tillerson. (Pickup previous) si.mb