Donald Trump nominates ExxonMobil CEO and Putin ally Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State
DONALD Trump has nominated ExxonMobil chief executive Rex Tillerson to be his Secretary of State.
The President-elect snubbed rival Mitt Romney to nominate the oil and gas tycoon, who has links to Vladimir Putin.
Trump met with Tillerson, 64, over the weekend, and has now named the businessman as the country's top diplomat.
As Exxon’s CEO, Tillerson oversees operations in more than 50 countries, including Russia.
While widely respected for his business acumen, Tillerson has never held public office.
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The Secretary of State oversees America’s foreign policy and is effectively the superpower’s highest-ranking diplomat.
Tillerson was reportedly recommended for the position by former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice – who served under President George W. Bush.
His appointment will need to be approved by the US Senate.
In a statement, Trump said Tillerson was among the "most accomplished business leaders and international dealmakers".
He said: “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.”
In 2011, Exxon Mobil signed a deal with Rosneft – Russia's largest state-owned oil company – for joint oil exploration and production.
Since then, the companies have formed ten joint ventures for projects in Russia.
The businessman is also reported to have close ties with Russian president Vladimir Putin.
In 2013, the Kremlin bestowed the country’s Order of Friendship honour on the oil boss – who went on to argue against sanctions at a shareholders’ meeting the following year.
One of ExxonMobil’s biggest deals in Russia – worth a reported $500billion (£398billion) fell victim to sanctions imposed by the Obama administration after Putin’s 2014 invasion of Crimea.
The news comes after a report by the CIA claimed Russia had interfered with the US election to actively help Donald Trump win the White House.
The US spy agency said that emails hacked from the Democratic Party and given to the controversial website WikiLeaks aided the Republican candidate’s win in November’s race.
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