WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump ousted his national security adviser Mike Waltz on Thursday and named Secretary of State Marco Rubio as his interim replacement in the first major shakeup of Trump’s inner circle since he took office in January.

Trump, in a social media post, said he would nominate Waltz to be the next US ambassador to the United Nations, adding that “he has worked hard to put our nation’s interests first.”

Earlier in the day, multiple sources said Trump had decided to force Waltz out of his White House position.

Trump’s selection of Rubio to replace Waltz temporarily will be the first time since Henry Kissinger in the 1970s that one person has held both the positions of secretary of state and national security adviser simultaneously.

“When I have a problem, I call up Marco. He gets it solved,” Trump said at a White House event earlier on Thursday.

The national security adviser is a powerful role that does not require Senate confirmation. Trump had four national security advisers in his first term: Michael Flynn, H.R. McMaster, John Bolton and Robert O’Brien.

Politico reported that Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff, who has spearheaded the US’s role in talks to end the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, and who has led negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program, is being considered to replace the outgoing national security advisor.

However, a source familiar with the matter told The Times of........

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