Updated April 27, 2018 08:12:31

Photo: The former CIA chief, Mike Pompeo, has been dabbling in diplomacy for some time. (Reuters: Leah Mills)

America's top diplomat has wasted no time getting started in his new role which comes at a pivotal time for US foreign policy.

Less than an hour after being sworn in, the new Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, boarded an air force jet at Joint Base Andrews headed for a foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels, before heading to Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Israel.

The former CIA chief has been dabbling in diplomacy for some time — weeks ago he stunned the world with a secret trip to North Korea to meet leader Kim Jong-un, as the Trump Administration tries to persuade Pyongyang to denuclearise.

The contrast between Mr Pompeo and his predecessor — Rex Tillerson — is stark.

While Mr Tillerson disagreed with Mr Trump on many foreign policy matters, his replacement is a staunch Trump loyalist. As Mr Trump has said, he and Mr Pompeo are "on the same wavelength".

Here is a look at what exactly goes into organising such a high-profile and historic summit and what we expect might happen.

As recently as last week, his confirmation was not guaranteed. Some senators have been critical of Mr Pompeo's hawkish views and past statements about homosexuality and Islam.

It is a crucial time for Mr Trump to have an ally as his top diplomat — within weeks he is set to announce whether he will exit the Iran nuclear deal, and is preparing for a possible high-stakes meeting with Mr Kim.

Mr Pompeo will also likely play a pivotal role in America's approach towards Syria, Russia and China.

Despite Mr Pompeo's huge workload, his appointment could be met with some relief at the State Department, which fractured under the controversial leadership of Mr Tillerson who left key posts unfilled and demoralised staff in his wake.

Earlier this week, it emerged Mr Pompeo was behind the push to reverse the Trump administration's decision to appoint Admiral Harry Harris as the next US ambassador to Australia, instead tapping the seasoned naval officer as Washington's envoy to Seoul.

Prior to taking up his role as Secretary of State, Mr Pompeo served 15 months as the director of the CIA, which involved delivering Mr Trump's daily intelligence briefings at the White House.

As a member of congress for Kansas, he was an outspoken critic of the Iran deal and frequently lambasted former secretary of state Hillary Clinton over the deaths of four diplomats in Benghazi, Libya in 2012.

Photo: Rex Tillerson was abruptly fired by Donald Trump last month. (Reuters: Mohd Rasfan)

Topics: government-and-politics, world-politics, foreign-affairs, united-states

First posted April 27, 2018 06:59:33