Rex Tillerson was Secretary of State for just over a year.
This afternoon Tillerson confirmed that he was leaving the position and his final day would be March 31st.
“moving forward on highlighting just the closeness, the interconnected-ness, the unique relationship in all the world”
It’s not good news for Canada as Tillerson had a great working relationship with Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland, and was considered a strong ally.
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson listens as President Donald Trump holds a cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., October 16, 2017. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)
“Both are considered to be among the strongest supporters of diplomacy currently on the scene in Western governments, even though Tillerson’s position frequently clashed with the White House and was undermined by a rocky personal relationship with Trump” Katie Simpson of CBC News wrote today.
When asked about the change in the Secretary of State, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters:.
“We know that we have had great working relationship with many folks, including Rex Tillerson, but I can also say that we’ve had a great working relationship with his successor, secretary designate Pompeo,” he said.
“We’re going to continue to build a strong productive relationship moving forward on highlighting just the closeness, the interconnected-ness, the unique relationship in all the world that is the friendship between Canada and the United States.”
Mike Pompeo, Director of the CIA, will be the new Secretary of State,
He is a strong Trump supporter, and it remains to be seen how supportive he will be on issues relating to Canada.
A former congressman from Kansas, Pompeo would be aware of the strong trade ties with this country as well as the strong security links.
(With files from CBC
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