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Updated 8.20pm
OUTGOING US SECRETARY of State Rex Tillerson warned in his farewell remarks that Washington DC must do more to respond to Russia’s “troubling behaviour and actions”.
After he was sacked by President Donald Trump, Tillerson also said US efforts to pressure North Korea had worked better than expected and revealed he would pass authority to his deputy at midnight.
The former oil executive said he would remain at the department until 31 March to conclude an administrative handover, but that Deputy Secretary John Sullivan would take charge.
Tillerson did not address reports that he had only learned of his sacking when he read about it in Trump’s tweet, but said he had since spoken to the president by telephone.
Among his last acts as secretary, as he flew back from Africa late yesterday, was to brief reporters on his “outrage” at Russia’s alleged involvement in an attempted assassination using a nerve agent in Britain.
In his farewell remarks today, he returned to the theme.
“Much work remains to respond to the troubling behaviour and actions on the part of the Russian government,” he said, before turning to warn Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin not to overstep.
“Russia must assess carefully as to how its actions are in the best interests of the Russian people and of the world more broadly.
Continuing on their current trajectory is likely to lead to greater isolation on their part, a situation which is not in anyone’s interest.
Tillerson’s sacking comes shortly after Trump, without consulting his top diplomat, decided to accept an invitation to talks with North Korea’s Kim Jong-un on resolving the Korean nuclear stand-off.
The departing secretary did not take issue with the decision, but suggested it was made possible by the hard work of his State Department and allies in building sanctions and diplomatic pressure.
He said this pressure campaign had “exceeded the expectations of almost everyone” and noted it was he who had declared on his first trip to Asia as secretary that the “era of strategic patience is over”.
Tillerson is set to be replaced by CIA director Mike Pompeo. Trump also announced the appointment of Gina Haspel to head the CIA – the first woman tapped for the post.
Trump praised Pompeo, a former US army officer and congressman who led the CIA for nearly 14 months, as “the right person for the job at this critical juncture”.
Rocky tenure
Tillerson, a former Exxon CEO, has had a rocky tenure as the top US diplomat and had long been rumoured to be about to be pushed out.
Tillerson was repeatedly forced to deny he had fallen out with Trump – vowing to remain in post despite a sensational report that he once dubbed the president a “moron”.
A respected figure in the oil business, the 65-year-old Texan’s tenure at the State Department drew scorn from Trump’s opponents, from former diplomats and from the Washington policy elite.
During his time in post, he was faced with an extraordinary array of foreign policy challenges, from North Korean nuclear threats to Russian subversion to attacks on US diplomats in Cuba.
But his efforts were often overshadowed by Trump’s un-diplomatic style and his streams of taunting tweets stirring international tensions.
Following a meeting with the Tánaiste Simon Coveney earlier this month, Tillerson had committed to appointing another Northern Ireland envoy.
When asked about the promise in Washington DC today, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said the priority for Ireland is for a US ambassador to be appointed, more so than a Northern Ireland envoy.
“The appointment of the US cabinet is for President Trump, not for me, but he is somebody who met with Minister Coveney not too long ago and we did think there was a basis for a good partnership and a good working relationship with him but he is no longer in office and Mike Pompeo is there instead and we look forward to the same relationship working with him,” said Varadkar.
© – AFP 2018 with reporting by Hayley Halpin and Christina Finn in Washington DC
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When can I stop paying 5% on my insurance to cover Sean Quinns gambling debt?
Around about the same time as you stop paying the levy that was put on premiums for PMPA (that company collapsed in the 80′s )Insurance.
I’m rich, rich I tells ya. Oh, no, wait, I’m not. I’m less marginally less poor.
Lol. Paid myself a salary today. So much better off! NOT. I am a communee. A victim of fitting into a certain bracket. When you can’t even take home half your salary, you really need to think about getting out.
An extra €3.35 a week. Nearly the price of a pint in my town. Heartbreaking!!!
So that’s a fiver a week back… Can I have the other €100 taken on me through wage cuts, taxes and levies… Seeing as “the recovery” is going so well.
I can nearly stop checking down the back of the couch now.
Lower income taxes, lower USC, lower property tax for many, cheaper petrol at the pumps. Even when you consider the water charges, the vast majority of people will be better off this year compared to last.
Are you on drugs!!!!
Its going to great, the whole country will be splashing out with there newly recovered wealth. The boom time is back!
An extra €5 in children’s allowance Ian!
MGL@…the guy you are addressing is not on drugs. You can only be slightly better off proportional to what you contribute in the first place. You cannot get blood from a stone. At the same time, blood does not return to a stone to produce Ruby…
On an individual level that 5e won’t make much difference so it would have been better off just saving it and diverting it elsewhere.
Sure who can afford drugs?
I don’t think families would be financial better off.The higher rate decreased by 1% and USC decreased by 0.5% across 3 bands of taxation (as far as I know).The water charges will ensure that families don’t feel the reduction of tax.Furthermore,2019 will bring normal back the normal rates of the water charge.This,in turn,makes me believe that the budget did no justice for the working class people.
Thanks for the fiver. You certainly won’t be getting it back for the water!
Free GP care for under 6′s, as per Budget 2014, seems to have been forgotten
Changes to tax rates? Only tax bands, or so I thought?
Income tax band increased by €1000 and the top rate dropped to 40%.
You on overtime today Reg?
Feck all on the telly Norman.
Thought so Reg,nice to see you’re talking up the budget on behalf of the government again,they really fecked up with the water charges though buried all the budget good news.Don’t forget to mention how better off you are with the changes,that might swing a few votes for FG.
Just answered Jason’s question with a couple of facts. Didn’t comment on the pros and cons of the budget.
But since you asked my household will be over €1000 better off than last year with the tax changes and children’s allowance increase excluding water charges. I’ll take that!
Reg gets some amount of stick from shinnerbots these days. Reg is like me, looking out for the realistic, hard working, self employed mofos…keep up the good work Reg.
Thanks for the support Gavin!
Gavin really anyone that doesn’t cheer lead for the government is a Shinner? Grow up.
I didn’t ask Reg I just reminded you to mention it.On one post you claimed €800 but then you upped it to a €1000.
I explained this to you previously Norman but you continue to repeat to try and discredit me. I said that the net effect of the tax changes it will be €800 (both of us on average enough salaries) but when you add children’s allowance it will be over €1000. Surely that’s not too difficult for you to understand?
Reg not trying to discredit you,just seems I have a better memory than you.
Reg, Norman is one of the people who are afraid things will get better & he’ll have nothing to moan & cry about!
Protect I don’t cry,moan very subjective really.Its only a moan because you disagree with the comment.
Thanks reg!
Nothing on the telly,boi ?!?!?! Top of the Pops : 1980 – Big Hits on BBC 4 ,boi !! Mirror in the Bathroom,like!
I’m all 80s out CorkBoi…..got a best of 80s CD for Christmas!!
Under this government budget & water plan, our household (average household income) is €220 per year better off.
Under the Shinner budget/water plan we would have been worse off by around €160.
Not keen on electioneering giveaways.
But I’m even less keen on unnecessary tax rises.
Let’s forget Shinners for a second and focus on those who cannot add. I have been asking this for months now. Can anyone, for the love of God, please explain their “Robin Hood” wet dreams/ “passed down cliches” as to how we don’t have an extremely progressive tax society. I will even give you a head start and say “start with the VAT” as that is the only theory that is not totally berserk. Real numbers (I will let you round them to real numbers) will suffice for this little experiment! Ps. If you don’t come out with real figures, you lose the argument and my search will go on…
VAT is high in Ireland. And often bizarre – for instance, while books are zero-rated, ebooks, which are more and more common as the way we read books, are rated at 23%. Insane.
A LACK OF EMPATHY just proves one thing, this government could do anything and the majority here just say what can we do, do they not realise that we the voters are the governments employers, that the government works for us and not their cronies or party donators or even the plutocrates in Frankfurt, Brussels or Berlin?
One foot forward 5 steps back – getting dizzy with the Government shuffle or we should we just do “the hussel” :-((
So what.
have your say