'We need a new direction'

Donald Trump on Tuesday defended his nomination of ExxonMobil chief Rex Tillerson as America's next secretary of state, dismissing concerns about the oilman's ties to Russia and saying US foreign policy needed a new direction.

The nomination, which capped weeks of debate about the right candidate, was the most keenly awaited in Trump's cabinet as the world waits to see how the incoming Republican president intends to alter US foreign policy.

Trump has stoked alarm among Democrats and fellow Republicans ahead of his January 20 inauguration by calling for closer ties with Moscow, in contrast to received wisdom in Washington that Russia remains a global security threat.

That sentiment -- coupled with the fact that Trump is at loggerheads with some Republican senators over a CIA assessment that Russian hackers helped him win the election -- may complicate Tillerson's confirmation hearings.

Trump, who announced the nomination early Tuesday, hailed Tillerson as a "great diplomat" and "one of the greatest and most skilled global business leaders of our time" at a campaign-style rally Tuesday night in the traditionally Democratic-leaning state of Wisconsin that helped elect him.

The 64-year-old Texan, who has no experience in government and spent his entire career at Exxon, "has the insights and talents necessary to help reverse years of foreign policy blunders and disasters," Trump told the crowd.

But politicians on both sides of the aisle have expressed concerns over Tillerson's ties to Russia. The businessman was awarded Russia's Order of Friendship by Vladimir Putin in 2013 and has publicly opposed sanctions on Moscow that thwarted his attempt to pursue huge oil deals in the Russian Arctic.

The Kremlin welcomed his nomination with an aide praising him as a "very solid figure" with whom Putin and Russians have "good, business-like relations."

Meanwhile, Trump tapped former Texas governor Rick Perry, who once famously said he would abolish the Energy Department, to serve as its secretary yesterday.

The nomination puts Perry, the oil-rich state's longest-serving governor, in charge of a vast array of energy oversight, including enhancement of nuclear security and science and innovation in the energy field.