As foreign dignitaries attempt to make sense of Trump’s foreign policy, I’m reminded of a Hawaiian phrase, “If you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes and it will change.” This too, might be wise for those who closely follow the Trumpeting tones from Washington, DC.
In fairness, it’s likely challenging for nations to wield strategic statecraft, but there are a few consistent “notes” that appear to repeat in President Trump’s rhetoric. Learning them can increase the likelihood of improved foreign policy.
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Domestic policy trumps all others (pun intended)
Nations that wish to curry favor with the current US administration are best served when identifying ways to align with or even assist on President Trump’s domestic policy. On domestic policy, he has waffled little and by most accounts, American sentiment largely supports his efforts.
Biden-bashing
While perhaps inaccurate in many cases, Trump often blames America’s current woes on his predecessor. While its generally unwise for nations to dabble in another nations’ internal politics, or “choose sides,” there are subtle ways nations can appear to support the current White House without trampling on Democrats. Clearly, such efforts are challenging, and pose risk, but they also present opportunities.
NATO-nagging
President Trump (like many presidents before) has long argued that all NATO allies needed to “pay their fair share.” Now Trump has taken the narrative to the extreme. Of note, in his previous term, President Trump was somewhat aggressive against NATO and observed some improvement, albeit not the full investment of 2% across the board. In his business mind, if being slightly adamant was partially effective, being outright belligerent can get even better results.
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Social media shenanigans
It is this medium that most find so challenging. Many argue that President Trump does himself few favors in social media. Perhaps true, but “wanting” something different is a wasted effort.
Bottom line, for those wishing to deal with President Trump, social media is a reality, and it’s what the world faces for the next four years.
Worth noting, it’s not just foreign governments that struggle with Trump’s social media engagement. His sometimes-spicy posts create challenges for overseas US diplomats, as they’re continually cornered and questioned, not that this is much of Trump’s concern.
Other than possessing a functioning crystal ball, the best course of action is to temporarily ignore his ‘shock-jock’ posts for a few days, let the dust settle, and then observe actions out of DC.
There is little question this US administration won’t be as unexciting as the previous. Some would argue it’s going to be far too exciting for a world that would benefit from a more measured global leader. That, however, isn’t an option.
What the world can do is to understand the current US president, better managing their engagement. Expecting Trump to change is a fool’s errand and foreign leaders can no more make President Trump change than they can change the weather. What they can do is change their own behavior to improve engagement. And, if you don’t like the weather over 1600 Pennsylvania Ave, wait five minutes. It will likely change.
The views expressed in this opinion article are the author’s and not necessarily those of Kyiv Post.
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