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What We Know About Rex Tillerson, Trump’s Pick For US Secretary Of State
Exxon Mobil chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson (NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images)
United States (US) President-elect Donald Trump has picked Exxon Mobil Chief Executive Rex Tillerson for the post of Secretary of State.
Tillerson moved ahead of other candidates for the position of the country's top diplomat after former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Trump's favourite to be the next US Secretary of State, dropped out of the competition on Friday (12 December).
Here’s what we know about Tillerson:
- Aged 64, Tillerson is the Texas-based oil company's chief executive officer since 2006. He joined Exxon in 1975 and has spent his entire career in the company. He oversees business operations for Exxon in over 50 countries and is set to retire next year.
- He is a long-time Republican supporter, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He is said to have supported Jeb Bush during the primaries. As per his past statements, he is in favour of free trade and wary of government regulations, says the report.
- Some Trump advisers see in him, a seasoned business executive, a "mold-breaking pick who would bring an executive's experience to the diplomatic role", reported the Wall Street Journal.
- Like Trump, he has no government experience, a first in modern history for a potential secretary of state, and so far little is known of his views about foreign affairs.
- Under his leadership, Exxon Mobil shifted its stance on climate change from combating it to supporting the established science and identifying solutions to the problem of climate change.
- Tillerson has known Russian President Vladimir Putin since the 1990s. He was awarded Russia's Order of Friendship in 2013, a state decoration to reward foreign nationals whose work is aimed at the betterment of relations with Russia.
With inputs from IANS
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