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WASHINGTON, Jan 20 (Reuters) – The U.S. Senate on Monday unanimously confirmed Republican Senator Marco Rubio, a China hawk and staunch backer of Israel, as President Donald Trump’s secretary of state.
The Senate backed Rubio by a vote of 99-0, days after the long-term member of the Senate foreign relations and intelligence committees sailed through his friendly confirmation hearing.
Rubio became the first of Trump’s cabinet nominees to be confirmed by the Senate, just hours after the president was sworn in for a second White House term. Additional votes on Trump nominees were expected this week.
Rubio, 53, is a harsh critic of China and an advocate for Israel. The son of immigrants from Cuba, he has also pushed for tough measures against the Communist-ruled island and its allies, especially the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
During his confirmation hearing, he warned that the U.S. must change course to avoid becoming more reliant on China, and promised a robust foreign policy focused on American interests. Rubio also said it should be U.S. policy that the war in Ukraine must end. He said reaching an agreement to stop the fighting would involve concessions from both Moscow and Kyiv, and he suggested that Ukraine would have to give up its goal of regaining all the territory Russia has taken in the last decade.
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