Washington, D.C. — President Donald Trump is disrespecting America’s closest allies and embracing the world’s most brutal dictators, charting a dangerous course that is destroying the foundations of U.S. foreign policy, according to a new analysis from the Center for American Progress.
These policies could cause irreversible damage to the nation’s security and prosperity and lead to a scenario where our allies don’t trust us and our adversaries don’t fear us, the analysis says.
It was bad enough when Trump withdrew the United States from the Iran nuclear deal and the Paris climate agreement. But over the span of just a few days in June, he became the first U.S. president to refuse to sign onto a statement of the G-7 leaders and the first president to meet with a North Korean leader. This represents a fundamental break between the United States and the alliances and democratic values that have grounded American foreign policy for decades.
There is likely more damage to come next month. As Trump prepares to visit the United Kingdom and attend the NATO summit on July 12 and 13, he is carving out time to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin as well. From overlooking Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine to its stoking the conflict in Syria to its ongoing attempts to interfere with American elections, the Trump-Putin meeting could result in lasting damage to U.S. national security interests.
“While it takes a lot to break an alliance, if the United States does not change course, we risk isolating ourselves and undermining our alliances to the point where our allies think we are the problem,” said Kelly Magsamen, vice president for National Security and International Policy at CAP and co-author of the issue brief.
Read the issue brief: “Destroying the Foundation of U.S. Foreign Policy” by Kelly Magsamen and Michael Fuchs
For more information or to talk to an expert, please contact Sam Hananel at [email protected] or 202-478-6327.