{"id":29677,"date":"2017-01-12T22:31:09","date_gmt":"2017-01-12T22:31:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/en.bornomalanews.com\/?p=29677"},"modified":"2017-01-12T22:31:09","modified_gmt":"2017-01-12T22:31:09","slug":"trump-top-diplomat-pick-differ-on-multiple-fronts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.bornomalanews.com\/?p=29677","title":{"rendered":"Trump, top diplomat pick differ on multiple fronts"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"exxonmobil\"Afp, Washington: Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of state signaled Wednesday he is prepared to diverge from the US president-elect on numerous key issues, notably nuclear non-proliferation, climate change and Russia, which he branded a “danger.”<\/p>\n

Despite accusations of being too cozy with the Kremlin, former ExxonMobil chief Rex Tillerson told skeptical senators at his confirmation hearing — which stretches into yesterday– that he would take a firm line with Moscow as he contradicted Trump's oft-proclaimed determination to improve ties with America's former Cold War foe.<\/p>\n

In his marathon testimony, Tillerson told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that it remained vital for Washington to be “pursuing nonproliferation,” and he expressed a desire for the US to “maintain its seat at the table” with regard to climate talks.<\/p>\n

On trade, his position countered that of Trump, who has vowed to rip up the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a massive free-trade agreement negotiated by 12 countries, on his first day in office.<\/p>\n

“I do not oppose TPP,” Tillerson said.<\/p>\n

The strongest break though regarded Russia. His testimony came against a backdrop of controversy over US intelligence conclusions that Russia conducted election-related cyberattacks against US democratic institutions.<\/p>\n

Tillerson said he believed it was “a fair assumption” that Russian President Vladimir Putin would have ordered his nation's meddling in the US election.<\/p>\n

“Russia today poses a danger, but it is not unpredictable in advancing its own interests,” he said.<\/p>\n

While Tillerson signaled his intention to be “clear-eyed” about Moscow, he refused to commit to economic sanctions against Russia.<\/p>\n

Tillerson, whose entire professional career has been in the energy industry, has faced criticism for his business relations with Putin and other authoritarian leaders.<\/p>\n

But the 64-year-old stressed that as Washington's top diplomat, he will conduct a more robust US foreign policy than during President Barack Obama's presidency.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Afp, Washington: Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of state signaled Wednesday he is prepared to diverge from the US president-elect on numerous key issues, notably nuclear non-proliferation, climate change and Russia, which he branded a “danger.” Despite accusations of being too cozy with the Kremlin, former ExxonMobil chief Rex Tillerson told skeptical senators at his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":29678,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,14],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\t\n