WASHINGTON--U.S. Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo promised on Thursday he would be willing to break from President Donald Trump if necessary, saying he would take a tough line with Russia and that he wanted to "fix" the Iran nuclear deal.
Pompeo, who is currently director of the Central Intelligence Agency, blamed tensions between Moscow and Washington on Russia's "bad behaviour" and said he would support more U.S. sanctions against Russia.
"(Russian President) Vladimir Putin has not yet received the message sufficiently," Pompeo told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee during a relatively smooth five-hour-long confirmation hearing.
He said Russia's push into Ukraine and other countries needed to be curbed. "We need to push back in each place and in every vector," Pompeo said. "We need to make sure that Vladimir Putin doesn’t succeed in what he believes his ultimate goal is."
Critics, including some in Trump's own Republican Party, have accused the president of taking too soft a line on the Russian president. Trump has denied that - and has been strongly critical in recent days of Moscow's backing of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad - but he has also talked of wanting better relations with Putin.
Trump nominated Pompeo to become the country's top diplomat on March 13 after firing Rex Tillerson. Tillerson, a former chief executive of Exxon Mobil, had a rocky relationship with Trump in just over a year in the job.
The start of Pompeo's hearing was disrupted by protesters chanting: "No Pompeo, no more war." Another shouted that the CIA director was no diplomat.
While Pompeo faced pointed questions from Democrats - including about his continued opposition to gay marriage and his associations with anti-Muslim organizations - he was also complimented. Democratic Senator Ben Cardin praised Pompeo's concise answers. Senator Chris Coons said he was "confident" Pompeo would be a strong advocate for diplomats.
Pompeo will likely need Democratic support to be approved by the committee because one Republican member, Senator Rand Paul, has announced his opposition. Senate rules allow a vote in the full Senate even if the panel does not approve the nomination, but that has never happened with a secretary of state.
Senator Bob Corker, the panel's Republican chairman, said he hoped it would vote on Pompeo on April 23, with a confirmation vote in the full Senate shortly afterward. At the end of the hearing, Corker said Pompeo had his "avid" support.
Senator Robert Menendez, the panel's top Democrat, said he would make his final decision after reviewing Pompeo's testimony and answers to written questions. He said he had not seen enough evidence of Pompeo's independence.
"I think he is someone who will execute what the president wants even if he is in disagreement," Menendez said.
