Trump to nominate Exxon CEO to be top diplomat: reports

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) – President-elect Donald Trump will select ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson to be America's next Secretary of State, according to multiple reports Saturday.

Trump reportedly met with Tillerson, 64, midday at his self-named tower in Manhattan. Trump is expected to formally announce his choice as early as next week.

Tillerson would come to the post with extensive experience in business, but without a history in government or diplomacy. NBC News reported he would be paired with former U.S. envoy to the United Nations John Bolton who would serve as Tillerson's deputy and oversee the day-to-day operations of the department.

Other candidates for the post have reportedly included high-ranking lawmaker Bob Corker, Bolton, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani pulled his name Friday from the handful of remaining contenders to helm the State Department.

Tillerson has already informed his board that he will be leaving the company for a new post, according to NBC News.

Like Trump, Tillerson will come to the position with an affinity for Russia. He brokered a deal to access mineral deposits in the arctic in 2011 from Russia but was unable to act on the agreement following western sanctions on Moscow after it annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine.

Tillerson has been a staunch critic of the sanctions, which he has said caused "broad collateral damage".