When Sanae Takaichi met Donald Trump this week, she had some good news. The new Japanese prime minister was nominating Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize. In doing so, Japan followed in the footsteps of the governments of Cambodia, Pakistan and Israel.
Flattering Trump — and catering to his obsessions — is now standard practice for foreign leaders. Sir Keir Starmer, Britain’s prime minister, used his first Oval Office meeting with Trump to unveil an invitation to a second state visit to the U.K. This, he emphasised, was “truly historic” and “unprecedented.
”This kind of fawning behaviour is undignified. But, a year on from Trump’s re-election, America’s allies have concluded that it is indispensable. To an extent that is genuinely unprecedented in the modern era, U.S. foreign policy is driven by the personal whims of the president.
Get on the wrong side of Trump and the consequences can be nasty. Relations between the U.S. and India went into a tailspin after the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, refused to give Trump the credit for making peace between India and Pakistan. The U.S. later hit India with 50 per cent tariffs. Trump also recently increased tariffs on Canada because he took umbrage at an anti-tariff television advertisement placed by the province of Ontario.
Trump’s tantrums and sudden changes of direction can make his foreign policy seem bewilderingly unpredictable. But there are some clear themes that have emerged over the past nine months.
The president has certain unwavering obsessions. He loves tariffs — believing that they will make America richer and more powerful. He is also convinced that the U.S. has been “ripped off” by its allies and is determined to remake the international system to align with his “America First” policy.
Trump’s approach to world affairs is deeply transactional. Talk about American values and freedom — beloved of former presidents — has been dropped. Instead, Trump likes to talk about American strength and to pocket “wins.” Those victories could be the promise of huge investments into the U.S. Or they could be another peace settlement that he can take credit for. …
The country that can’t say no to Trump
Financial Times
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トランプ氏にNOと言わぬ日本、家康もぼやいた同盟の「実利と忍耐」
日本経済新聞
いまの国際環境下の日本で能動的に「ノー」と言わないのはリアリズムだ。問題はそこに確固たる戦略があるかどうかだ。
When Sanae Takaichi met Donald Trump this week, she had some good news. The new Japanese prime minister was nominating Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize. In doing so, Japan followed in the footsteps of the governments of Cambodia, Pakistan and Israel.
Flattering Trump — and catering to his obsessions — is now standard practice for foreign leaders. Sir Keir Starmer, Britain’s prime minister, used his first Oval Office meeting with Trump to unveil an invitation to a second state visit to the U.K. This, he emphasised, was “truly historic” and “unprecedented.
”This kind of fawning behaviour is undignified. But, a year on from Trump’s re-election, America’s allies have concluded that it is indispensable. To an extent that is genuinely unprecedented in the modern era, U.S. foreign policy is driven by the personal whims of the president.
Get on the wrong side of Trump and the consequences can be nasty. Relations between the U.S. and India went into a tailspin after the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, refused to give Trump the credit for making peace between India and Pakistan. The U.S. later hit India with 50 per cent tariffs. Trump also recently increased tariffs on Canada because he took umbrage at an anti-tariff television advertisement placed by the province of Ontario.
Trump’s tantrums and sudden changes of direction can make his foreign policy seem bewilderingly unpredictable. But there are some clear themes that have emerged over the past nine months.
The president has certain unwavering obsessions. He loves tariffs — believing that they will make America richer and more powerful. He is also convinced that the U.S. has been “ripped off” by its allies and is determined to remake the international system to align with his “America First” policy.
Trump’s approach to world affairs is deeply transactional. Talk about American values and freedom — beloved of former presidents — has been dropped. Instead, Trump likes to talk about American strength and to pocket “wins.” Those victories could be the promise of huge investments into the U.S. Or they could be another peace settlement that he can take credit for. …