Newly appointed US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will visit Saudi Arabia this week as part of his first trip since his swearing-in on Thursday. Speaking on the tarmac of Joint Base Andrews in front of the secretarys government jet as he arrived from his Supreme Court swearing-in, Heather Nauert said the stops were chosen to reflect their "importance as key allies and partners in the region." His trip will also see him travel to Jordan and Israel. He kicks off his duties as secretary of state with a NATO meeting Brussels. "No other secretary in recent history has gone on a trip as quickly as he has,” added Nauert. Pompeo replaces Rex Tillerson, the former oil executive President Donald Trump fired in March after a year of tensions and turmoil in the State Department, where he alienated much of his staff and left the body deeply demoralized. But where Tillerson was seen as a voice for moderation in the Trump administration, Pompeo is viewed as a hawk who could combine with new White House National Security Advisor John Bolton to back more aggressive posturing by Trump on the world stage.