American foreign policy under Trump: We will not support any friend or oppose any foe
In conducting its foreign policy, the United States has relied on a combination of “carrots and sticks,” captured most eloquently and famously in Kennedy’s inauguration address, with the ringing words, “let every nation know whether it wishes us well or ill, we shall pay any price, bear any burden, support any friend, oppose any foe, to ensure the survival and success of liberty.” This commitment to allies and deterrence of adversaries was renewed and restated in different ways by almost every American president.
Trump has torn this principle American foreign policy to pieces and has replaced it with the pusillanimous principle “let them fight their own wars” to America’s allies and leniency toward its enemies.
This principle does not put America first as the president has claimed, it doesn’t even make America an isolationist, instead, it makes America a cynical bystander who has witnessed a crime, one well within its power to stop but chose not to. Even more damning is that America not only stood by while our Kurdish allies were slaughtered, but has actively aided the slaughter by preventing the Kurds from seeking protection from Russia and Bashar Assad. The fact that the Kurds are running away for their lives from an attack by a NATO member into the arms of Russia and the universally despised Assad testifies to the depth of failure of American leadership in the region and in the world.
Under President Donald Trump, the United States have moved from the champion of human rights and democracy to a sponsor of ethnic cleansing and violations of human rights. NATO member Turkey and its jihadist allies have carried out invasions and ethnic cleansing in full view of the world. The United States and the UN can no longer lecture authoritarian regimes on their violations of human rights without revealing blatant a double-standard in the conduct of its foreign policy. Trump has eroded America’s credibility.
From now on, the US may have to resort to force, as its words will no longer mean anything. The debacle in Syria has put a considerable dent in America’s credibility in standing by its allies and deterring its enemies. Not only are US allies doubtful about US’s commitment to them, but its enemies have become emboldened as the United States has reneged on its promises to its Kurdish allies. To deter its enemies, the United States may have to resort increasingly to the use of force, as its words will not be seen as credible deterrence.
Under Trump’s leadership, the US has become a pariah. Trump has ordered the withdrawal of US forces from
Syria, clearing the way for Turkey’s invasion. Now those forces relocated to Iraq have been unwelcome in Iraq. As a result of the debacle in Syria, American prestige has suffered so much that the prime minister of a semi-failed state of Iraq lectures the leader of the free world on international law. Iraqi President Barham Salih has stated that the US forces that were pulled out of Syria don’t have permission to stay in Iraq. Salih, a Kurd, has had strong relationship with the US, but now seems to doubt America’s reliability as an ally. Salih’s message was directed as much at Iran as it was at the US, signaling to Iran that Iraq will not aid the US in its efforts to push back against Iran. This maybe also reflect the Kurds’ new pivot toward Iran as a more reliable ally than the United States.
The writer is a master’s student in government at Johns Hopkins University, focusing on the Kurds, Iraq, Turkey and Syria.