Fired after 14 months, he says he will stay on until March 31.

Outgoing Secretary of State Rex Tillerson took deep breaths and appeared emotional as he delivered farewell remarks Tuesday only hours after being fired by President Donald Trump. Mr. Tillerson, who didn’t mention Mr. Trump by name, thanked colleagues for their service during his 14-month tenure and said he would ask his team to remain at their posts to continue their mission. In his remarks delivered at the State Department, the former Exxon Mobil Corp. chief executive said he would remain at State until midnight on March 31. “I’ll now return to private life as a private citizen, as a proud American, proud of the opportunity I’ve had to serve my country,” he said. He declined to take any questions from reporters. Mr. Trump, who fired Mr. Tillerson on Tuesday, has named Central Intelligence Agency director Mike Pompeo as his successor. Mr. Tillerson said that the president called him from Air Force One a little after noon Tuesday, without providing further details. The call would have been more than three hours after the president announced his firing on Twitter.

More From The Wall Street Journal (subscription required):