Trumped on tour
Richard Fulton
President Trump’s nine-day tour was a study in contrasts. He is lavished with praise and adulation in the one certifiable autocratic regime on his tour, given the full press by Israel hoping for foreign policy changes opposed by Europe, and then met with cold tolerance by the major democratic powers in the world.
I talked about the Saudi-Israeli segment of the tour last week. The only missing link in that narrative was the rather strange visit Trump made to the leader of the Palestinians. Insiders tell us that he ended up raging at the Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas ending by saying “you lied to me.” Imagine that, diplomats lying.
Lecturing to the leaders that he met seems to have been a theme of his tour. He famously lectured all the NATO leaders publicly at a ceremony of unity (?) symbolized by a new monument to 9/11 next to him. His theme centered on NATO members needing to contribute more to NATO.
He failed to mention that over half of the members had increased their military budgets in the last couple years. He failed to note that NATO members, the first time in the organization’s history, approved support of the US directly after 9/11 using Article 5 of the NATO Charter.
This article is the “one for all, all for one” basis of the organization. If one is attacked, all will respond in support. And so Europeans have in Iraq and Afghanistan as well. Shamefully, Trump didn’t think it appropriate to reiterate U.S. full support for Article 5. The Russians were ecstatic.
While kissing up to Saudi Arabia Trump alienated America’s oldest and most reliable allies. Following the meeting, and after the G-7 meeting that followed, the key allies of France, Great Britain and Germany all found flaws in the support given by America at their meetings.
Angela Merkel of Germany specifically lamented the U.S. by saying in a recent speech that Europe would have to find their own way because of the inability to depend upon others—meaning the United States.
Prime Minister May of Great Britain publicly rebuked Trump and the U.S. for leaking information about the terrorists that struck them last week. Our allies are increasingly wary of sharing intelligence with us because of Trump’s big mouth and insecure intelligence.
Not once did Trump mention the dangers of an aggressive Russia. Yet several members of NATO are frightened of Russia on their borders after their aggression in Ukraine. Note the new president of France told Vladimir Putin to his face that he should stop the harmful propaganda campaigns he is waging in Europe.
No such warning to Putin from Trump, although most agree that Russia interfered with our elections last year and Trump key advisors are under investigation for illicit contacts with Russians.
Trump’s “America First” attitude and campaign seems to our allies to translate as “America exclusively.” The two major things that European and G-7 leaders were looking for from President Trump were: 1) a solid and public reiteration of America’s full support for NATO and the protections it implies and; 2) a full support of the Paris Climate Change goals.
They got neither. Indeed, word out of the White House is that Trump will withdraw America from the accord. Meanwhile, Russia remains an enigmatic friend of Trump. This is a disaster for the world’s environment and for our children’s future.
On top of all this, Trump is now adding Europe to his rants against trade policies of our major trading partners (he specifically denigrated German trade).
Trump as a diplomat has been a failure, with his style and as well as his substance.
Richard Fulton is an emeritus professor of political science.
