Rex Tillerson
Diplomats have been warned to avoid looking at Mr Tilleron's eyes Jung Yeon-Je/Reuters

In Brussels today, some of the world's top diplomats will be gathering for an important NATO meeting. It was due to take place in early April but was rescheduled for the 31 March to allow the new US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to attend.

Tillerson has remained a relatively quiet member of President Trump's administration and his own department.

But in a new report by The Washington Post it has emerged that many diplomats have yet to meet him and some have been told to avoid eye contact.

"Most of his interactions are with an insular circle of political aides who are new to the State Department. Many career diplomats say they still have not met him, and some have been instructed not to speak to him directly — or even make eye contact."

Tillerson has kept a low profile since the inauguration. He has made very few remarks to the press and opted not to travel with a press pool.

Earlier this month, Tillerson stood by his decision to not allow reporters to travel with him on his trip to Asia, calling himself "not a big media press access person."

And when asked why he wouldn't travel with more reporters, he said: "Primarily, it's driven—believe it or not, you won't believe it—we're trying to save money. I mean, quite frankly, we're saving a lot of money by using this aircraft, which also flies faster, allows me to be more efficient."

The news created a mini Twitter storm with more than 20,000 tweets commenting on story.