A new Cold War may well begin if the Secretary of State Rex Tillerson leaves his post, according to the Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council’s International Affairs Committee Vladimir Dzhabarov.

“Russia will certainly work with any U.S. Secretary of State, and it is an internal question for the United States. But if Tillerson leaves and a hawk is appointed instead of him, we need to prepare for a Cold War,” Mr. Dzhabarov said on July 25, 2017.

Besides, Mr. Tillerson’s resignation would mean a loss for President Donald Trump in his fight with the democrats in the U.S. Congress, the Russian senator noted.

The CNN television network had earlier reported that Secretary Tillerson may leave his position because of disagreements with the White House. There are reportedly serious differences of opinion on personnel issues and the U.S. relations with Iran.

Mr. Tillerson will apparently remain in his position until the end of the year in order to reorganize the State Department and to have at least a year of service as the chief U.S. diplomat. At the same time, the decision to quit can be made at any time, according to CNN.

Rex Tillerson has served as the United States Secretary of State since February 1, 2017. He was the chairman of the board of directors and the CEO of ExxonMobil from January 1, 2006 to January 1, 2017.

The relationship between Russia and the United States worsened after Crimea’s accession to the Russian Federation and the outbreak of a military conflict in Eastern Ukraine. As a consequence, the U.S. issued several rounds of sanctions against Russia. On August 2, 2017, President Trump signed into law a bill that levied new sanctions on Russia and restricted the President’s ability to ease pre-existing Russian sanctions.