There is an adage in international relations: No Permanent Friends, No Permanent Enemies; Only Interests. In the context of the 47th President of the United States, that saying could be extended to domestic relations as well. Look at the fashion in which the foreign and domestic dimensions of America have progressed in the last six weeks or so.
The on-off tariffs rhetoric against Canada and Mexico aside, President Donald Trump berated the visiting President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. And just when Russia seemed finished celebrating its arch foe shown the White House door, it is facing the threat and wrath of American sanctions.
And in a span of three days the Trump administration is having direct talks with Hamas and asking Teheran to return to a nuclear framework that Washington walked out of in 2018. Of course Hamas and Teheran are not without the usual bluster: you better, or else… The tough and yet diplomatic posturing are meant to tell allies and adversaries not to take anything for granted.
Gunning for Greenland
And after a lull, Greenland is back in the news. In his address to Congress, Trump maintained that he was keen to get that strategic and mineral rich land.
“We strongly support your right to determine your own future, and if you choose, we welcome you into the United States of America. We will keep you safe. We will make you rich. And together we will take Greenland to heights like you have never thought possible before,” Trump told a joint session of legislators, adding “One way or the other, we’re going to get it”.
Pakistan was lavished with praise for handing over a terrorist “monster” responsible for the killing of 13 American soldiers in Kabul during the hasty retreat in 2021; and in a policy shift the Republican administration also approved $397 million for maintaining its F-16 jets to be used as counter-terrorism operations, and not against India. Even as Islamabad’s civilian leaders and brass hats were celebrating, they were reminded of a New Year ‘gift’ in 2018, by way of a tweet.
“The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than $33 billion in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies and deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools,” Trump said. “They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!”.
Even before the formal dressing down, Vice President Mike Pence during a visit to the American largest military base in Afghanistan in December 2017, remarked: “Trump has put Pakistan on notice.” The Biden administration in 2022 reinstated military assistance.
It is just not Europe but world leaders are on an edge figuring out the directions of American foreign policy as it pertains to security, strategic and economic issues.
In going back and forth on tariffs, there is the clear indication that the President would want to give more time to friends and allies to fall in line; and at the same time listening to key domestic players and markets on the implications of going through with punitive measures. The same goes for who is calling the shots when it comes to trimming the fat of bureaucracies: President Trump has now said that it was Cabinet Secretaries to make the call, not Elon Musk of the Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE.
Whether it is China, Canada, Mexico and India on tariffs, Ukraine and Greenland for minerals or Gaza for real estate, it is all down to deals. And it is not going to matter how long anybody has known the US and in what capacity.
For a person who places a premium on reciprocity, it hardly matters if a country has a front row admission ticket for any event featuring President Trump. In fact those seats could bring about unwanted attention.
The writer is a senior journalist who has reported from Washington DC on North America and United Nations