Mike Pompeo bids farewell as US Secretary of State, promises 'to never stop fighting'

As Donald Trump’s administration comes to an end, Mike Pompeo on January 20 bid farewell as the Secretary of State and thanked US citizens for their support and kindness. While taking to Twitter, Pompeo, who served as the 70th Secretary of State, said that each day was a privilege to serve the American people. He also added that “lord is watching over America”. 

In another tweet, Pompeo wrote, “It has been an honor to serve as the U.S. Secretary of State. Today, as I step down from this role as our nation’s top diplomat, I am proud of what we achieved — and I promise to never stop fighting for America”.

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During his final days, Pompeo had taken a series of actions. He specifically took action against the rising threat of China’s aggressiveness. He also sanctioned six Chinese and Hong Kong officials for the imposition of the draconian national security law in the former British colony. 

Pompeo openly slammed China on issues, including their failure to curb the spread of COVID-19, China’s rising assertiveness in the South China Sea and its crackdown on Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. Further, amid tensions between Tehran and Washington, the ex-Secretary of State imposed sanctions on several Iranian officials as well. 

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Biden, Harris take oath at US Capitol 

Meanwhile, Joe Biden, the 46th President of the United States and Kamala Harris, the first woman vice president have been inaugurated at the US Capitol on January 20. Starting at noon (local time), Biden administration will be taking over the White House with ambitious goals to achieve in the very first days. Harris was sworn in by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. and Biden by  Chief Supreme Court Justice John Roberts.

While Biden will be revamping America’s stance on a range of issues including climate policies, immigration laws and even suspension of US-Mexico border wall construction, Biden has called it “a new day for America”. Even though the event was scaled down amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the 59th inaugural ceremony took place with officials wearing masks.

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