Tillerson to make his European tour amid rising rift over Iran nuclear deal

WASHINGTON, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- U.S. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said Thursday that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will visit London, Paris, Warsaw and Davos on January 21-27, as the trans-Atlantic ties have been challenged by widening division over the U.S. proposed revision of the Iran nuclear deal, among others.

According to her announcement, Tillerson will meet with British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and National Security Advisor Mark Sedwill to discuss bilateral cooperation on such issues as Iran, Syria, Libya, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and Ukraine.

While in Paris on January 23, Tillerson is expected to meet with senior French officials to discuss global issues of mutual concern. He will also attend the launch of the International Partnership against Impunity for Use of Chemical Weapons.

He will then travel to Davos, Switzerland where he will participate in the 2018 World Economic Forum from Jan. 24-26. During the Forum, he will follow U.S. President Donald Trump's schedule of meetings.

The last stop will take Tillerson to Warsaw on Jan. 26, where he will meet with senior Polish officials to discuss how to promote the U.S.-Poland bilateral relationship in issues regarding global challenges, regional security, and economic prosperity.

The trans-Atlantic ties between the United States and Europe at large has been shaky ever since Trump assumed the presidency on Jan. 20, 2017. The two sides have also seen snowballing differences on multiple issues like Trump's retreat from the Paris climate accord, his decision to recognize Jerusalem as Iarael's capital at the end of 2017 and his refusal to certify Iran's compliance with the historic Iran nuclear deal in October.

Trump on Jan. 12 said he will extend sanctions relief on Iran under a landmark nuclear deal for the last time, threatening a U.S. withdrawal from the pact if the U.S. Congress and his European allies cannot fix the alleged "disastrous flaws."

One day ago, he made a sudden announcement that he has canceled his trip to Britain to inaugurate new U.S. embassy due to stated disappointment over the bad spot for the embassy, sparking further irritation in London, as many people and government officials asked British Prime Minister Theresa May to withdraw her invitation to Trump to pay a state visit. Enditem