Aussie PM gets earful from Trump
Combative foreign policy continues
IT SHOULD have been one of the most congenial calls for the new US commander-in-chief a conversation – with the leader of Australia, one of America’s staunchest allies, at the end of a triumphant week.
Instead, President Donald Trump blasted Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull over a refugee agreement and boasted about the magnitude of his electoral college win, according to senior US officials briefed on the Saturday exchange.
Then, 25 minutes into what was expected to be an hour-long call, Trump abruptly ended it.
At one point, Trump informed Turnbull that he had spoken with four other world leaders that day – including Russian President Vladimir Putin – and that “this was the worst call by far”.
Trump’s behaviour suggests that he is capable of subjecting world leaders, including close allies, to a version of the vitriol he frequently employs against political adversaries and news organisations in speeches and on Twitter.
“This is the worst deal ever,” Trump fumed as Turnbull attempted to confirm that the US would honour its pledge to take in 1250 refugees from an Australian detention centre.
Trump, who one day earlier had signed an executive order temporarily barring the admission of refugees, complained that he was “going to get killed” politically and accused Australia of seeking to export the “next Boston bombers”.
The incident is the latest in a series of combative exchanges with national leaders as Trump advances an iconoclastic foreign policy that appears to sideline traditional diplomacy and concentrate on decision-making among a small group of aides who are quickly projecting their new “America First” approach to the world.
Just before the Senate confirmed Trump’s new Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, on Wednesday, national security adviser Michael Flynn made a surprise appearance in the White House briefing room to deliver a tight-lipped warning to Iran over its most recent ballistic missile test.
“As of today, we are officially putting Iran on notice,” Flynn said.
He blamed the previous Obama administration for failing to confront Iran forcefully enough over its “malign actions” and said Trump was changing course.
Tillerson takes office after a chaotic first dozen days for the Trump administration that saw big swings away from national security and foreign policy stances in place under the Obama administration.
The rise of figures such as Flynn and senior counsellor Stephen Bannon in the White House calls into question whether someone like Tillerson, a former oil company executive who is perceived to be a more mainstream Republican, will wield much influence.
Trump campaigned on blowing up business as usual in Washington, apparently including the courtly traditions of US diplomacy.
Still, the administration’s tone has surprised allies and government employees who expected the new president to first spend time offering diplomatic niceties.
The severity of an order suspending the country’s refugee resettlement programme and temporarily banning entry from seven Muslim-majority nations blindsided even Republican supporters in Congress.
Even before the order, Trump’s first days in office were marked by actions and statements that former US officials and some foreign diplomats saw as intentionally confrontational, such as a public spat with the Mexican president and dismissive comments about the European Union.
Trump used his inauguration address to blast America’s trade partners and global outlook, and his first hosting of a foreign leader to praise Brexit as a victory for British “sovereignty”.
He recounted his own frustrations dealing with the EU in a real estate deal. “I had a very bad experience,” he said.
He called the 28-member body “the consortium”.