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Donald Trump picks Rex Tillerson, Exxon CEO, as Secretary of State

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Washington: US Republican President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday formally announced Exxon-Mobil Corp chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson as his nomination to serve as US secretary of state.

"His tenacity, broad experience and deep understanding of geopolitics make him an excellent choice for Secretary of State. He will promote regional stability and focus on the core national security interests of the United States," Trump said in a statement released by his transition team.

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Rex Tillerson picked for US secretary of state

President-elect Donald Trump has picked ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson to be his secretary of state. drawing scrutiny to Tillerson's Russian business ties.

The President-elect had dismissed bipartisan concerns that the globe-trotting leader of the energy giant had forged a too-cozy relationship with Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, transition officials said.

The announcement finally brings an end his public and chaotic deliberations over choosing the nation's top diplomat – a process that at times veered from rewarding Rudy Giuliani, one of his most loyal supporters, to musing about whether Mitt Romney, one of his most vicious critics, might be forgiven.

In the end, Trump did neither, discarding not only Giuliani and Romney, but also passing over an endlessly changing list that at times included Republican Senator Bob Corker, David H. Petraeus, the former US Army general and CIA director; and Jon Huntsman Jr, the former Utah governor and presidential candidate in 2012.

Romney, Petraeus and Corker – the three leading runners-up for the diplomatic posts – all received calls late on Monday informing them of Trump's decision, according to people familiar with the President-elect's final choice.

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Trump teased his imminent announcement of Tillerson on Monday night on Twitter, saying that "I will be making my announcement on the next Secretary of State tomorrow morning".

He settled on Tillerson, a dealmaker who has spent the past four decades at Exxon, much of it in search of oil and gas agreements in troubled parts of the world. A native of Wichita Falls, Texas, who speaks with a strong Texas twang, Tillerson, 64, runs a company with operations in about 50 countries, cutting deals to expand business in Venezuela, Qatar, Kurdistan and elsewhere.

If confirmed as secretary of state, Tillerson would face a new challenge: nurturing alliances around the world that are built less on deals and more on diplomacy.

That could prove to be a special test when it comes to Russia, where Tillerson has fought for years to strengthen ties through business negotiations worth billions of dollars. Under his leadership, Exxon has entered into joint ventures with Rosneft, a Russian-backed oil company, and donated to that country's health and social programs.

In his new role, Tillerson would have to manage the difficult relationship between the United States and Putin's Russia, including economic sanctions imposed on Moscow for its intervention in Ukraine. Last month, President Barack Obama and European leaders agreed to keep sanctions in place until Putin agrees to a cease-fire and to withdraw heavy weapons from front lines in eastern Ukraine.

In the past several days, as officials close to Trump suggested that he was close to choosing Tillerson, Republican and Democratic lawmakers warned Tillerson would face intense scrutiny over his two-decade relationship with the Russian leader. Russia awarded Tillerson its Order of Friendship in 2013.

Republican Senator John McCain said on Saturday that Tillerson's ties to Putin were "a matter of concern to me" and promised to examine them closely were he to be nominated.

"Vladimir Putin is a thug, bully and a murderer, and anybody else who describes him as anything else is lying," McCain said on Fox News.

Other Republicans who have challenged Tillerson's potential selection include Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, who expressed concern in a Twitter post on Monday about the Exxon chief's relationship with Putin.

But the President-elect has decided to risk a bruising confirmation fight in the Senate, apparently concluding that Tillerson will ultimately be allowed to lead the State Department.

Trump had favoured Giuliani initially, but he quickly grew weary of the former New York mayor's penchant for drawing outsize news media attention. Trump was also troubled by reports of Giuliani's business entanglements overseas. And some of the President-elect's closest advisers, including his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, saw Giuliani as a poor fit for the job.

That led to interest in Romney, who had called Trump a "fraud" and a "phony" during the campaign. Romney also had highlighted Russia as a danger to US interests during the 2012 race.

Trump and Romney made peace, meeting twice and speaking periodically by phone. But some of Trump's advisers, including his last campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, warned publicly in a series of television interviews that some of his supporters would quickly drift away if Romney were tapped for the job.

Tillerson emerged as a contender on the strong recommendations of James Baker III, the secretary of state under the first president George Bush, and Robert Gates, the former defence secretary, according to a person briefed on the process.

Kushner and Trump's chief strategist, Stephen Bannon, advocated strongly for Tillerson, and the President-elect became intrigued.

Trump met with Tillerson for more than two hours on Saturday at Trump Tower in Manhattan, and was said to have established a clear rapport with him. To his aides, Trump described Tillerson as in a different "league" than his other options, language that Bannon and Kushner had both used.

Romney acknowledged late on Monday in a Facebook post that he had been passed over, writing that "it was an honour to have been considered for Secretary of State of our great country."

"My discussions with President-elect Trump have been both enjoyable and enlightening," Romney wrote, adding that he had "very high hopes that the new administration will lead the nation to greater strength, prosperity and peace".

New York Times, Reuters

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