Donald Trump's Secretary of State has accused Joe Biden of being weak on Iran, calling the administration 'crazy' for continuing with discussions over the nuclear deal while Tehran attacked Western assets and allies.
Mike Pompeo appeared on Sean Hannity's Fox News show on Monday night, and said that he was dismayed at the failure to take a tougher line on countries such as Russia, China, North Korea and Iran.
Iran, Pompeo said, was taking advantage of U.S. 'weakness' - referencing an attack on the MV Mercer Street, operated by an Israeli-owned firm, off Oman on Thursday.
The UK and US believe Iran was behind the attack that killed two people, and have vowed to respond, calling it a violation of international law.
'They have now killed a Brit, killed a Romanian, attacked a ship at sea,' said Pompeo.
'Launched rockets through their proxy Hamas into Israel from the Gaza Strip.
While JCPOA talks are on hold, the Biden administration @POTUS should take the opportunity to re-assess the nature of the incoming Iranian government and its likely priorities before making any decision on the nuclear deal. @SaeidGolkar @KasraAarabi https://t.co/fjwrLV6ALx
— Nazenin Ansari (@NazeninA) August 2, 2021
'We are still sitting at the table trying to negotiate a nuclear deal with them. This is crazy.'
Pompeo, widely considered to be sizing up a run at the White House in 2024, said that Trump had forced adversaries to take the United States seriously.
'Whether it is Chairman Kim in North Korea or President Xi in China, they can see weakness we will literally try to drive a truck through it,' he said.
Pompeo, 57, said once again that the Biden administration should do more to punish China for its role in the COVID pandemic.
China still insists that the virus spread naturally, from animals to humans, but Pompeo and others are now convinced that it escaped from a laboratory in Wuhan.
'We have seen the deep cover up, right?' he said, referencing China's failure to grant the World Health Organization officials full access to the Wuhan facility.
'That continues to this day, they won't let anybody in to do the investigation in a proper way.'
He accused Beijing of being slow to act to prevent the virus from spreading.
'The Chinese Communist Party is responsible for a lot of people that traveled with a known very contagious virus, one that is very lethal - they put it across the world,' he said.
'That is reckless. And they have to be held accountable.
'There are a lot of ways we can do that. It doesn't appear that Biden administration is going to head down that path.
'There are many tools that, without any further legislation, the Biden administration could use to hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable for the millions of deaths around the world and billions of dollars in lost wealth that resulted from this Chinese foisting of the virus upon the world.'
He said that Biden must also 'put real pressure on the Chinese Communist Party, in particular, with Taiwan.'
Pompeo pointed out that the Trump administration had sold fighter jets and drones to Taiwan, and pushed back against Chinese attempts to take control of the waterways.
'We have to be serious about these things,' Pompeo said.
'When you are weak, you create risk because your adversaries believe they can walk all over you.
'When you are strong, clear about the words that are used, and are prepared to back them up - as the Trump administration always was - when you are prepared to back up the things that will secure American freedom, your adversaries take note of that.'
This article has been adapted from its original source.
