US officials claim Trump is planning to replace Sec of State Tillerson with CIA chief

Plans are underway by the US President Donald Trump to oust Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and replace him with CIA Director Mike Pompeo according to US officials in the know.

Senior administration officials revealed that Trump’s move became imminent after his relationship with Tillerson was strained by the top U.S. diplomat’s softer line on North Korea and other differences.

Read also: TILLERSON: US has opened channels of communication with North Korea

Trump is now hoping to replace Tillerson with Pompeo, a Trump loyalist and foreign policy hard-liner, as he moves to carry out the most significant staff shake-up so far at the White House.

Tillerson, 65, has spent much of his tenure trying to smooth the rough edges of Trump’s unilateralist “America First” foreign policy, with limited success. On several occasions, the president publicly undercut his diplomatic initiatives.

His long-rumoured departure would end a troubled tenure for the former Exxon Mobil Corp chief executive, who has been increasingly at odds with Trump over issues such as North Korea and under fire for planned cuts at the State Department.

 

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