Trump and World Affairs

Heading back to normal

US foreign policy traditionally starts with the doctrine ‘The USA has neither permanent enemies nor permanent friends but the national interest is the only permanent friend of the USA’, propounded by the first US President, George Washington. This is realpolitik and all the US Presidents have tried to pursue this direction. The main difference is the ‘strategy’ every US President adopts.
President Donald Trump aggressively launched the same policy but with the idea of ‘reconstruction of the US policy in the world affairs.’ The previous policy was to take care of the friendly countries globally engaged to facilitate the US interests, and he USA funded all the allies at war fronts against the rival powers and UN projects serving the humanity across the world but President Trump deconstructed this traditional approach of the US policymakers and gave a major shift under the two possible stresses or ambitions:
Instead of pouring US dollars on the other countries and projects, the White House should spend money within the USA to cope with the problems being faced by the US people. The immigration policy, especially the deportation of people illegally in the USA, shows that the President plans to create more job and business opportunities for the US people. But this assumption will be verified if the taxes are lessened and more facilities are provided to the US people. At the moment, cut on the funding of the Universities and Centres creates confusion about this reasoning.

The policy to ensure dominance in the world affairs as a policeman of the world but with a different strategy would be the model of Donald Trump and the world will witness his new face and phase of mildness within one year because the USA cannot afford aloofness in the world politics and UN affairs

Second assumption is that the Trump administration wants to create panic, in the world affairs and this deconstruction which will result in the restoration of the traditional policy. The world will be forced to come to terms as the US plans. The President seems to aggressively deal with the foreign affairs to impose the new world order with the same ambitions under the zeal ‘USA is a policeman of the world.’ So the ambition or goal is the same but the strategy is different. At the moment, the world sees Donald Trump has isolated himself and the EU, China, UK, Iran, Ukraine, among others, are uncomfortable with the current US policy.
Can the USA afford it? Never, the USA will maintain its hegemonic role in the world affairs in any case. Right now, the landlord is dealing with the tenants in a rude mood because things must be dealt with under the new strategy. The world depends on a potent and mighty USA in the military support and UN projects on humanitarian ground. The world needs war items, technological equipment, intellectual guidance and peacemaking potency in the conflicts and terrorism that the USA cannot block by confining itself within the US boundaries.
Roaring about making Canada its state, making Gaza an independent resort, capture of Panama Canal, sharing booties with Russia, taking heavy weapons and an airbase back from Afghanistan, and authenticating Israel claim on the Palestinian areas, can be an aggressive strategy and the goals are tough the US President has undertaken because all this cannot be achieved within one-term as all the stakeholders seem adamant and resistant against the US ambitious policy.
The US policymakers must be knowing about the repercussions and side-effects of this massive destruction in the traditional policy towards the world affairs, loss of friends, countering capacity to China, the stepping back from the US projects in the fields of health, poverty, education, research, child labour, human rights, and more, Therefore I see two results of the current Trump policy, returning to the traditional policy after one year or hunting for a new direction of the world affairs on the business model. In both the models, the US hegemony will remain unquestioned and the intellectual line given by George Washington will not only continue, but also prevail in the new panorama of the world affairs.
What is wrong if Donald Trump plans to expel or block illegal immigrants? No country can permit illegality. The West seems upset on the nuisance, violence and illegal activities of the people ftom Third World countries settled in the western countries. The squeezed job market is a stress not only for the locals but also the governments that are thinking to stop immigration and to deport the troublemakers.
Foreign policy determinants change according to the circumstances and every sovereign state possesses the right to retain or change the foreign policy, therefore the USA, Britain, China, or any country can modify the trends and strategy to cope with the situation created by the immigrants or policy of any other country.
The current US policy can be assessed and reviewed in the perspective of the US past that many US Presidents endeavored to make the fullest use of the democratic right endowed by the Americans. The US people like an assertive presidency, therefore Donald Trump is behaving assertively, with the same ambition but different strategy. We see this in the case of his dealing towards Ukraine, the European Union, China, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, India and Israel.
The policy to ensure dominance in the world affairs as a policeman of the world but with a different strategy would be the model of Donald Trump and the world will witness his new face and phase of mildness within one year because the USA cannot afford aloofness in the world politics and UN affairs.

Dr Akhtar Hussain Sandhu
Dr Akhtar Hussain Sandhu
The writer is Principal of the Govt Islamia Graduate College, Lahore

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