Donald Trump’s choice as secretary of state, former Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson, denied Wednesday that he had pressed the U.S. to avoid sanctioning Russia over foreign-policy disputes. The record, though, is not so clear.
The nominee testified at his confirmation hearing that “I have never lobbied against sanctions personally” and “to my knowledge, Exxon never directly lobbied against sanctions.”
There’s ample evidence, though, that the company was active in seeking to protect its interests in Russia. As a bill to impose sanctions on Russia over its annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea region moved through Congress in 2014, Exxon sought to influence the outcome, according to congressional records and data from the Center for Responsive Politics, a watchdog on money and politics. President Barack Obama signed the measure into law later that year.
Given a second chance on the subject at the Senate hearing, Tillerson sought to clarify his answer by saying his opposition came after sanctions were imposed and that he expressed security-related concerns.
Tillerson has spoken of his almost two-decade relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin. At the time, his company’s stake in a lucrative offshore drilling project with the Russian state oil company Rosneft was under threat. He made numerous White House visits, to no avail.
