Donald Trump likely to name Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson US secretary of state

Los Angeles : Adding another millionaire candidate to the cabinet list, US President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday announced Rex Tillerson, CEO of oil and gas company Exxon Mobil, as country’s next Secretary of State.

His name first emerged as a leading candidate for the post on Friday, however, later his meeting with Trump on Saturday morning confirmed some reports.

An official spokesperson mentioned that Tillerson had moved ahead in Trump’s deliberations over 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who has met the President-elect twice since November 9.

Interestingly, Tillerson oversees operations in more than 50 countries, including Russia, which is likely to raise some controversy following Trump’s new hacking connections with the country.

Notably, in 2011, Exxon Mobil signed a deal with Russia’s largest state-owned oil company, Rosneft, for joint oil exploration and production. Since then, the two companies have formed 10 joint ventures for projects in Russia.

Talking about Tillerson, Trump in a Fox News interview said, "He's much more than a business executive; he's a world-class player. He knows many of the players, and he knows them well. He does massive deals in Russia - for the company, not for himself."

 

The interview with Fox News will be aired on Sunday.