Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger has applauded President-elect Donald Trump’s selection of ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillersron for America’s next top diplomat.
Trump selected Tillersron on Tuesday to lead the State Department in his incoming administration, ignoring concerns about the oil chief’s business relations with Russia.
Speaking at an event in Manhattan in New York City on Wednesday, Kissinger dismissed concerns about Tillerson’s close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“I pay no attention to this argument that he is too friendly with Russia,” Kissinger said, according to Politico. “He would be useless at the head of Exxon if he was not friendly with Russia… I don’t hear those concerns at all.”
Tillerson has reportedly close business relations with Russia and was awarded “Order of Friendship” — one of the country’s most prestigious awards given to foreign nationals — by the Russian government in…