WASHINGTON — In his first address laying out his vision as secretary of state, Rex W. Tillerson said Wednesday that the United States had been far too accommodating to emerging nations and longtime allies and that “things have gotten out of balance.”

Righting those imbalances, he said, will be the mission of the State Department as it fulfills President Trump’s promise to put “America first.”

“We were promoting relations. We were promoting economic activity. We were promoting trade with a lot of these emerging economies, and we just kind of lost track of how we were doing,” Mr. Tillerson said. “And as a result, things got a little bit out of balance.”

Pacing around a stage in the department’s auditorium, Mr. Tillerson then discussed a series of specific challenges facing the United States.