Kissinger lauds Trump’s pick for secretary of State

Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger applauded President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for the nation’s next top diplomat.

Trump on Tuesday tapped Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson to lead the State Department.

“Nobody can meet every single qualification for secretary of State,” Kissinger said Wednesday at an event in Manhattan, according to Politico. “I think it’s a good appointment.”

Kissinger additionally dismissed concerns Tillerson’s business dealings have made him too cozy with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

{mosads}“I pay no attention to this argument that he is too friendly with Russia,” he said at the event put on by the Committee of 100, an organization that advances U.S.-China relations. “He would be useless at the head of Exxon if he was not friendly with Russia … I don’t hear those concerns at all.”

But Kissinger spoke cautiously when discussing Tillerson, joking he did not “come to commit suicide” when asked about the CEO’s nomination.

The former secretary of State, who served under both Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, added he “sympathized” with Trump’s selection of Tillerson, whose connections to Moscow are sure to raise tough questions during his confirmation hearings in the Senate.

Putin and Tillerson negotiated an energy partnership in 2011 that the former said could be worth $500 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Tillerson then received the Russian Order of Friendship the following year, one of highest awards the country bestows upon foreign nationals.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) on Tuesday said he has “serious concerns” about Tillerson, raising the possibility he may oppose his appointment.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), have also raised concerns.