Jan 1, 2020

Pompeo postpones Ukraine trip to monitor tensions in Iraq

Pompeo

Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo postponed what would have been his first trip to Ukraine less than 24 hours before his scheduled departure amid ongoing tensions in Iraq, a State Department spokesperson said Wednesday.

The big picture: The State Department said the trip — which would have included stops in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Cyprus — was meant to "reaffirm U.S. support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity" while the country seeks an end to a six-year military conflict with Russian-backed separatists. The trip would have also come as President Trump's Senate impeachment trial, centered around an alleged pressure campaign on the Ukrainian government, looms.

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