Tillerson Grilled on Russia, Sanctions as He Breaks with Trump on Key Issues

Members Only Subscribe to read the full article

January 11th, 2017

Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson on Wednesday sharply differed from President-elect Donald Trump on a number of key foreign policy issues, suggesting he’d take a much tougher line on Russia while at the same time declining to make any pledges regarding sanctions in response to Russian interference in the U.S. election.

During his confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Tillerson, the former ExxonMobil CEO, also made statements at odds with the president-elect on nuclear issues, a ban on Muslims, NATO, the Iran deal and climate change. Tillerson told senators he has only spoken with Trump about world issues in broad terms and that they have not spoken in-depth on Russia policy.

“The Cipher Brief has become the most popular outlet for former intelligence officers; no media outlet is even a close second to The Cipher Brief in terms of the number of articles published by formers.” —Sept. 2018, Studies in Intelligence, Vol. 62

Access all of The Cipher Brief‘s national security-focused expert insight by becoming a Cipher Brief Subscriber+Member.

Continue Reading

Get access to all our briefs

Categorized as:InternationalTagged with:Congress State Department Trump

What the Experts Say

I’m proud to be part of the network of experts at The Cipher Brief, which provides superb geopolitical advice and intelligence insights.

Admiral James Stavridis Former Supreme Allied Commander, NATO

The in-depth analysis The Cipher Brief provides, on all issues affecting our national security, written by some of the most senior and knowledgeable public and private sector experts, is truly unique and invaluable. It’s a must read for anyone interested in world affairs.

Ambassador Joseph R. Detrani Former Director, National Counter Proliferation Center

Congratulations to The Cipher Brief for actively promoting a national conversation – through conferences, analysis, and webinars at the highest level – on our country’s national security, intelligence capabilities, and challenges in confronting adversaries and competitors alike.

Emile Nakhleh Former Member, CIA's Senior Intelligence Service

The Cipher Brief has become required reading for national security decision-makers and practitioners. You can be certain that Cipher Brief articles are substantive in content and provide thoughtful analysis from expert professionals.

John Sipher Former Member, CIA's Senior Intelligence Service

The Cipher Brief is far from just another website pontificating about the subjects of the day without any credibility. With The Cipher Brief, you can always be sure that the authors actually know what they are writing about.

Kevin Hulbert Former CIA Chief Of Station

Tillerson Grilled on Russia, Sanctions as He Breaks with Trump on Key Issues

Continue Reading

Untangling Pashtun History

Related Articles

Closing the Gap in US Cruise Missile Defenses

Where Are Six Years of War in Yemen Going?

President Biden’s Middle East: A Briefing with Norman Roule

The Cipher Daily Brief

Search