President Trump’s U-turns

President Donald Trump told Spain’s leader Mariano Rajoy last week that the United States is committed to NATO, despite his past criticism of the transatlantic military alliance. Trump’s first conversation with Rajoy since taking office on January 20 served to “reaffirm the strong bilateral partnership across a range of mutual interests,” the White House said. Since the United States provides significant funding to NATO, Trump had previously urged other member nations to step up their contributions. European leaders were concerned about Trump’s virulent criticism of NATO – he had dubbed the transatlantic military alliance “obsolete”. Trump’s friendly stance toward Putin has been under scrutiny, and triggered consternation among European allies, since he won the US election in November. Trump’s other U-turn was his call to Chinese President Xi Jinping in which he said that he would honor the “One China” policy.
In December, Trump had raised doubts about his commitment to the agreement – and infuriated many in Beijing – by speaking by phone with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen. That was a big deal in diplomatic circles because no US president had spoken to a Taiwanese leader in decades due to the One China policy. The policy acknowledges Beijing’s stance that it alone represents China’s national government and that the island of Taiwan is a breakaway province that belongs to China. All of Trump’s predecessors had only unofficial diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and Trump’s direct conversation with Tsai was utter disregard to that practice. “I fully understand the One China policy, but I don’t know why we have to be bound by a One China policy unless we make a deal with China having to do with other things, including trade,” Trump had said. One would see more U-turns vis-à-vis immigration pushed by the court’s verdict.
America has been pursuing the policy of containing China, but despite its ruses and manipulations, China has excellent relations with the countries of Asia, Africa and South America. Despite some bickering and debating, the relations between the US and China had markedly improved after boost in their economic ties. China, which owns an estimated $1.27 trillion in U.S. Treasuries, is the number-one investor among foreign governments. This amounts to over 21% of the U.S. debt held overseas and more than 7% of the United States’ total debt load. If Trump continues to provoke China and starts a trade war, America stands to lose. In view of European countries disillusionment with Trump, they are not likely to be a part of his venture or misadventure. Australia has already refused to be part of policy of containing China. In this backdrop, there is no immediate threat of III World War.
On 27th January 2017, Conn Hallinan columnist in ‘Foreign Policy In Focus’ wrote a treatise titled ‘How Trump Could Blunder Into War with China’. He referred to testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee of secretary of state nominee Rex Tillerson on January 17, who said: “The US must send a clear signal that, first, the island-building stops, and that Beijing’s access to those islands is not going to be allowed.” If the U.S. actually tries to blockade China from supplying its forces, constructing airfields and radar facilities on the Spratly and Paracel islands, it would be considered as an act of war by China. The nationalist Global Times of China warned of a “large-scale war” if the U.S. followed through on its threat, and the China Daily cautioned that a blockade could lead to a “devastating confrontation between China and the U.S.”
In line with Obama administration’s “Asia Pivot” in the Pacific. American bases in Okinawa, Japan, and Guam have been beefed up, and for the first time since World War II, U.S. Marines have been deployed in Australia. In March 2016, the U.S. sent B-2 nuclear-capable strategic stealth bombers to join them. Last summer, China’s commander of the People’s Liberation Army Navy, Wu Shengli had told U.S. Admiral John Richardson that “we will never stop our construction on the Nansha Islands (China’s name for the Spratlys).” Two weeks later, Chang Wanquan, China’s Defense Minister, said: “Beijing is preparing for a “people’s war at sea.” Will NATO countries support America’s plan to contain China? In fact, the relations between the US and NATO were not ideal, as in March 2015, US allies – Germany, France, and Italy – agreed to join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank launched by China.