Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said he’s the only person who knows when he’ll be resigning as chief diplomat, despite being plagued by rumors that he and President Trump’s working relationship has disintegrated.
“I’m here to serve my country. I committed to this president. My word is my bond. I ride for this brand. That’s why I’m here. And nothing anybody else says is going to change that,” he told CBS’ “60 Minutes” in an interview that aired Sunday.
Tillerson didn’t give speculation about tension between he and Trump “much thought,” he continued, saying he and the president “typically will try to talk every day.”
Tillerson shrugged off press coverage of the pair’s public disagreements, including on whether to engage with North Korea diplomatically, just enforce sanctions on the hermit kingdom, or a combination of both approaches.
“Well, as I said, the president communicates in his own style, his own way, his own words. And from time to time I — I will ask him, ‘Are you changing the policy? Because if we are, obviously I need to know, and everyone needs to know,'” he said.
“And — and to finish the thought, that has never happened. Every time I’ve talked to him he says, ‘No, the policy hasn’t changed.’ And I say let — then I’m good. That’s all I need to know,” Tillerson added.
The wide-ranging interview also touched on U.S. policy toward Russia, and on the restructuring of the State Department under his leadership.
Tillerson attributed delays in posting ambassadors to places like South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey to “the nature of the process itself.”
“Well, there’s been no dismantling at all of the State Department. We’ve got terrific — people, both foreign service officers, civil servants, that have stepped into those roles around the world [on an interim basis],” he said.
