Tillerson urged the State Department to embrace realism

The US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called for the divorce of the US interests and policies form the US values in the realm of foreign policy. According to the head of US diplomacy, the principle of "America first!", the slogan of the pre-election campaign of Donald Trump, means distancing American foreign policy from such values as "human rights" and "freedom."

The corresponding statement Tilerson made, referring to the diplomatic staff and personnel of the State Department. " I think it's really important for all of us to understand the difference between politics and values ... “Our values around freedom, human dignity, the way people are treated – those are our values. Those are not our policies.”, Tillerson said. According to him, the imposition of American values on other countries may in some cases be disadvantageous for the USA and " creates obstacles to our ability to advance on our national security interests, our economic interests.”

Thus, the US Secretary of State indicated that he would like his department to adhere to a realist, rather than a liberal paradigm in relations with other countries.