What countries aligning with Trump must ask themselves

I remember a story about a bear and two hunters from years ago. As the tale goes, when the bear approaches, one of the hunters prepares to run. Shocked, the second hunter asks the first, “Can you run faster than the bear?” “Well,” the first hunter replies, “I only have to run faster than you.” There is an important lesson to take from this story. US President Donald Trump has been trying as hard as his predecessor Joe Biden to isolate and contain China, albeit in a less systematic manner. The Trump administration plans to use tariff negotiations with multiple countries to ask them to bar Chinese companies from shipping goods through their territory, prevent Chinese firms from setting up shop there and avoid China’s industrial goods. In a bid to sow discord, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has accused China of striking “rapacious deals” to take mineral rights from African nations and adding “huge amounts of debt onto these countries’ balance sheets”. At the same time, however, Trump has done a lot to alienate the rest of the world, which undermines the goal of cutting China off from the international community. The Trump administration has launched a trade war on the world, rejected the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, pulled the US out of the World Health Organization and the Paris climate accord and refused to sign an international declaration on inclusive and sustainable artificial intelligence. Why is Trump’s right hand out of sync with his left hand? The answer lies in the doctrine of “America first” that now guides US foreign policy. As Trump put it recently, “If we can make a really fair deal and a good deal for the United States, not a good deal for others, this is America first.” Apparently, Trump’s “America first” policy sees an inherent conflict between the US and the rest of the world. It requires that the winner in any deal should be the US, whose gain would therefore be the other country’s loss. Therefore, in any conflict, the US’ interests take precedence, and the well-being of other countries has to be sacrificed for Uncle Sam’s. The “Make America Great Again” agenda is to be achieved at the expense of other countries, whether they are Washington’s allies or foes. “America first” is thus becoming a major source of tension between the US and the rest of the world. Such a divisive policy will hinder any effort to realign Europe and others against China. In the West, Trump’s policies have inflicted enormous damage on the US’ ties with allies, prompting them to undertake a strategic rethink. At least one European leader, hoping to avoid increased tariffs, tried to remind the US president that his priority was China. But with Trump’s announcement of “Liberation Day” tariffs and the reiteration of his territorial designs on Greenland, the European Union has realised that he needs all the resources he can get for his Maga project, not just from China, but also from the bloc. Thus, Trump’s hostility is pushing the EU to pivot towards China. Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has described Canada’s old relationship with the US as “over”. Japan is, for its part, entering trade negotiations with the US while also engaging with China and South Korea in talks for closer economic and trade ties. In the Global South, the Trump administration’s efforts to push developing countries to side with the US are gaining little traction. For many developing countries, China is the largest trading partner and a major foreign investor. Curtailing Chinese imports or investments, as the Trump administration demands, will invariably hurt these economies. They stand to lose more than they gain, especially if Beijing takes retaliatory measures in response to actions it deems detrimental to China. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva views China standing up to Trump’s levies as an act of justice that has won wide support. In championing the cause of the Global South and partnering with poor countries to promote economic development, China is regarded as one of their own. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim spoke for many developing countries when he said: “We stand with the Chinese government, for the well being of our people and for our national economic interests, as well as the overall development and stability of our country.” An egotist has few friends; Trump’s move to isolate China will win few hearts. The alliance against China his administration is trying to build is likely to be small and fragile. As Martin Wolf pointed out in the Financial Times, “Trump’s ‘America first’ is bound to mean America alone.” Nevertheless, there will be countries which are coerced into accepting Trump’s terms. Under US pressure, Panama, for instance, has agreed to US troop deployments to the country and decided to exit China’s Belt and Road Initiative. There may be countries which choose to align with the Trump administration’s China strategy. It is notable that US Vice-President J.D. Vance said: “We’re not on anybody’s side. We’re on America’s side.” The US will neither be on the right side of history nor of justice. As both the chaotic withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan under Biden and Trump’s peace plan for Ukraine demonstrate, in times of adversity, Washington acts like the first hunter in the story about the bear. If countries choose to follow the US, it may be a good idea to ask themselves if they can run faster than Uncle Sam.

What countries aligning with Trump must ask themselves

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}It is becoming increasingly clear that the “America first” policy sees an inherent conflict between the US and the rest of the world

It is becoming increasingly clear that the “America first” policy sees an inherent conflict between the US and the rest of the world