By Michael C. Bender and Felicia Schwartz
WASHINGTON -- Secretary of State Rex Tillerson described how he
seeks to manage an often-fraught relationship with President Donald
Trump, saying he tries to deliver short-term victories to an
impatient commander-in-chief while focusing on a longer horizon
himself.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal Thursday, Mr.
Tillerson acknowledged the contrasting styles of the two men and
described his effort to bridge the gaps, while rejecting swirling
rumors of his impending departure. "I see those differences in how
we think," Mr. Tillerson said in his State Department office. "Most
of the things he would do would be done on very short time frames.
Everything I spent my life doing was done on 10- to 20-year time
frames, so I am quite comfortable thinking in those terms."
His solution: "Delivering the incremental wins," he said.
"Incremental progress is taking you toward the ultimate objective,
which is, as I say is eight, 10 years down the road."
Mr. Tillerson said one of his top long-term priorities is
shifting the balance of the trade and national-security
relationship with China, even as he adopted Mr. Trump's stern tone
on Asia's economic power.
On Thursday, Mr. Tillerson warned China that the U.S. has an
arsenal of economic weapons to force Beijing to address trade
imbalances and a continuing territorial dispute in the South China
Sea.
"We can do this one of two ways," Mr. Tillerson said during the
interview, seeming at times to speak directly to his Chinese
counterparts. "We can do it cooperatively and collaboratively, or
we can do it by taking actions and letting you react to that."
Tools he might apply include tariffs, World Trade Organization
actions, quotas and other mechanisms, he said.
The president and Mr. Tillerson are scheduled in November to
visit Asia for a 10-day trip through five countries, including
China, where the two former businessmen -- both first-time public
office holders -- will push these issues.
Mr. Tillerson said the race to stem North Korea's nuclear
program, as well as trade issues with Japan and South Korea, will
also dominate the trip. His tough talk on China came as the
country's leaders are meeting at the Communist Party Congress, a
summit that takes place every five years.
In a response to Mr. Tillerson's recent tough talk, the Chinese
Embassy in Washington on Wednesday released a statement. "Through
dialogue and cooperation with the countries in the region, the
situation in the South China Sea is generally stable. Countries
outside the region should fully respect these efforts to safeguard
regional peace and stability," it said.
"The track record demonstrates that China and the U.S. are
better together. We hope the U.S. side can work in the same
direction with China to ensure the healthy and sound development of
the China-U.S. relationship," the statement continued.
Mr. Tillerson's comments follow a rocky summer in his
relationship with Mr. Trump. Signs of tension between them have
continued to overshadow the insistence from both men that all is
well.
"If I were a world leader -- doesn't matter who -- I wouldn't
talk to Tillerson," said Larry Wilkerson, who was chief of staff to
former Secretary of State Colin Powell, citing the public divide
between the two men. "The president must feel that this person can
do the work for him...this is not the case here. It's becoming
antagonistic."
During a meeting at the Pentagon one weekend in July, Mr.
Tillerson rolled his eyes as he reluctantly acquiesced to the
president's criticism of the Iran nuclear pact. "It's your deal,"
Mr. Tillerson said in his Texas drawl as he peered in the direction
of other cabinet officials, instead of Mr. Trump.
After that meeting, Mr. Tillerson referred to the president as a
"moron, " according to people familiar with the conversations. Mr.
Tillerson's spokeswoman has denied he made the remark.
Mr. Trump has also disparaged his top diplomat, complaining that
Mr. Tillerson doesn't understand his "Make America Great"
philosophy and has few original thoughts. "Totally establishment in
his thinking," he has told aides.
Asked Thursday if he believed Mr. Trump should be re-elected,
Mr. Tillerson paused for a beat, then said, "Well, of course."
"I mean, I don't think about it, quite frankly, right now," he
said. "We've got these things we're dealing with, but yeah."
Early on in the administration, Messrs. Trump and Tillerson
seemed to have an easy rapport. They are both successful
businessmen, and Mr. Tillerson's global experience as the CEO of
Exxon Mobil Corp. was a major appeal for the new president as he
put his cabinet together.
When they first arrived in their new jobs and their wives had
yet to join them in Washington, they often ate dinner together,
joined by a combination of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis; John
Kelly, now the White House chief of staff; and General Joseph
Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
While those dinners have largely stopped, Mr. Tillerson and the
president continue to meet, as they did in the Oval Office on
Thursday, in what was at least their second meeting this week. In
what a State Department spokeswoman described as a "positive," they
had lunch together earlier this month after initial reports of
name-calling between them.
Mr. Tillerson's openness to speaking to reporters comes after he
was prompted to hold a news conference to address rumors that he
was on the verge of quitting and had made derogatory remarks about
the president. On Thursday, Mr. Tillerson expressed confusion about
rumors of his departure. "Who in the world is telling you that
stuff?," he said.
He said he would remain in the job "as long as the president
thinks I'm useful."
The secretary pointed to successes on strengthening capabilities
of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, particularly on
counterterrorism, a peaceful pressure campaign on North Korea, the
campaign to defeat Islamic State in Iraq and Syria and the
administration's approach to South Asia.
"Look, I'm my own person, I'm a serious person," Mr. Tillerson
said. "And I'm not of any use to president if I'm not that. If I
try to be anything other than that, I'm no use to him."
Mr. Tillerson said Thursday he likes to view foreign-policy
problems according to region.
"I believe you solve a problem in Afghanistan not by just
dealing with Afghanistan," he said. "You solve it by solving a
regional problem, and that's the way we're looking at the Middle
East."
He has honed that approach in brainstorming sessions that have
evolved over his time at Foggy Bottom. In his first months in
office, Mr. Tillerson and a small circle of aides convened weekend
sessions during which they kicked around policy approaches by
sketching ideas on a white board. Those sessions are now twice a
week, sometimes on Saturdays when convenient, and include career
state department officials, an official said.
The Texas oilman turned chief diplomat said he spends the bulk
of his time concentrating on North Korea, Iran, counterterrorism,
China and Russia.
Noting that U.S. and China officials have long been able to
negotiate their differences peacefully, he repeatedly said China
"went too far" in its push to claim resources in the South China
Sea, one of the most important trade arteries for the world's
largest economies.
"Our view is you're going to have to walk some of that back," he
said.
Mr. Tillerson said the Trump administration is seeking agreement
on a code of conduct in the region, noting that other countries
"are guilty of having done the same thing to a lesser extent" as
China. He said the Philippines is looking for "mutually agreeable
ways" to share disputed areas without conflict.
"Look, some things have gotten out of whack," Mr. Tillerson said
about U.S.-China relations. "We've got to address them."
Write to Michael C. Bender at Mike.Bender@wsj.com and Felicia
Schwartz at Felicia.Schwartz@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 19, 2017 19:47 ET (23:47 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.