US President-elect Donald Trump’s nomination of ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State would pose a grave threat to both US and global security and should be rejected by the Senate, Global Witness said today. Exxon is currently facing allegations that it misled the public over the science behind climate change, it has a long history of questionable deals with oil-rich countries around the world and it has consistently tried to undermine global efforts aimed at reducing corruption in the extractives sector... 

“...On Rex Tillerson’s watch, Exxon is accused of misleading the public about what it knew of the threat from climate change, for which it’s now under investigation by the New York Attorney General...” said Corinna Gilfillan, Head of Global Witness' US office.

Investigations by Global Witness have shown how ExxonMobil or its corporate predecessor Mobil have engaged in questionable transactions with governments of oil-rich countries, including Nigeria, Kazakhstan, Equatorial Guinea, Angola and Chad. Such deals have contributed to entrenching poverty, fuelling instability and violating human rights in some of the world’s most volatile regions...

[The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative] requires member companies to report the payments they make to governments of participating countries; other oil companies, including BP and Shell, have done this in the US, while Exxon has chosen not to... Global Witness is alarmed about the company’s aggressive use of subpoenas against government prosecutors as well as environmental groups that have investigated and criticized Exxon’s record on climate.