AJC Statement on Nomination of Rex Tillerson as U.S. Secretary of State

AJC issued the following statement upon the announcement by President-elect Trump that he will nominate ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State:

AJC, which advocates for American values and Jewish community concerns in the United States and across the globe, and which maintains active relations with well over 100 countries and a number of multilateral institutions, looks forward to working with the Trump administration’s Secretary of State, as we have with previous Secretaries for more than a century.

Mr. Tillerson has distinguished himself in the management of one of the world’s premier corporations. At the same time, we are unfamiliar with his larger geopolitical view of the world and America’s place in it. As such, both before and during his Senate confirmation process, we will be particularly interested in his perspectives on a number of key issues, among them:

• U.S.-Israel relations: Would Mr. Tillerson continue the bipartisan tradition of support for and mutually beneficial cooperation with the State of Israel, America’s democratic and reliable Middle East ally, which faces profound security threats, ongoing attacks on its legitimacy in international forums, and repeated Palestinian refusals for an enduring two-state peace agreement?
• Iran: Would Mr. Tillerson, recognizing the danger posed by Iran to U.S. interests and allies in the Middle East and around the world, including the terror threat posed by the Iranian proxy Hezbollah, intensify U.S. efforts to confront the theocratic regime’s hegemonic ambitions and seek to ensure that Iran does not violate any of its treaty obligations regarding its nuclear program?
• Transatlantic relations: America’s allies, trading partners and sister democracies in Europe have expressed concern about the new Administration’s commitment to NATO, its policies toward an increasingly aggressive Russia that has violated Ukrainian sovereignty and challenged European cohesion, and its attitude toward the European Union as a defender of common values, common security concerns, and expanded trade. We look forward to hearing Mr. Tillerson’s thinking on these critical issues.
• Alliances: America’s international relations are built on a series of partnerships with valued friends and allies that extend beyond Europe and the Middle East, including key nations in Asia, such as Japan and South Korea, with which we have security treaties, our immediate neighbors Canada and Mexico, and other democratic nations with long-standing strategic, diplomatic, economic, and cultural links to our own country. In his view of the world, how does Mr. Tillerson regard these nations and the importance of our relations with them?
• Human rights: America’s essential and respected international leadership is a product not only of military might, but also its adherence to such core principles as the sanctity of universal human rights. American resolve, creativity, and moral force – in addition to other tools at our nation’s disposal – help shape a peaceful and lawful world able to stand up to oppressors and to promulgators of racism, antisemitism, and other bigotries. We will be eager to learn about Mr. Tillerson’s perspective on this important matter.
• Extremism: Violent radical Islam, a perversion of one of the world’s great religious traditions, poses an urgent global threat. Confronting and defeating it requires a comprehensive strategy, close coordination with a wide range of countries and organizations, and, in particular, the active partnership of like-minded Muslim communities and Muslim-majority allies. We shall hope to better understand Mr. Tillerson’s views on this urgent security challenge.