Mike Pompeo appears to acknowledge transition, saying it will honour US ‘obligations’

Donald Trump’s secretary of state has said that he has full faith in the US constitution and expects that “the transition process will work”, in what appeared to be a concession that Joe Biden would be in the White House in January.

Mike Pompeo , in Paris for the start of a 10-day, seven-nation tour, told French newspaper Le Figaro that America’s allies need not be alarmed.

"I am entirely confident that the coming days and weeks will show how much we are attached to the constitutional frame of this election," he said. 

"The transition process will work and honour our internal and external obligations."

Mr Pompeo sparked widespread anger last week when asked about the transition.

He replied that he was confident there would be “a smooth transition to a second Trump administration.”

Mr Pompeo will, over the next week, speak to senior officials in France, Turkey, Georgia, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

World leaders - among them the rulers of France, Israel, and Saudi Arabia - have already congratulated Mr Biden, the president-elect.

Yet Mr Trump is still defiantly clinging on to claims that the election was stolen from him, claims made without evidence, and hoping beyond all realistic hope that the courts can overturn Mr Biden's win.

Mr Pompeo, with one eye on making a run for the White House himself in 2024, has previously refused to accept Mr Trump's loss.

Amid the anger at his provocative remarks last week, he then went on to clarify his comments in an interview later on Tuesday.

"Our adversaries should know that we're ready, we're continuing to work, we'll work all the way through January," he said.  

"And then on January 20th, we'll have a transition, whether it's to a Trump administration - a second Trump administration as I spoke about today - or to an administration led by former Vice President Biden."