War in Ukraine tests Trump’s foreign policy

From the early days of his first presidential campaign, donald trump He vigorously questioned the pillars of Republican foreign policy that had defined the party since World War II. He mocked the capture of John McCain during the Vietnam War, validated autocrats, questioned the established military and security alliances of United States and adopted an isolationist position.

And—to the horror of many Republican leaders at the time—his words paid off, resonating with voters who believed, in part, that a bipartisan establishment in Washington had cut trade deals that hurt American workers and carelessly entered into “ eternal wars”.

However, Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine is presenting a serious test for Trump and his “America First” doctrine, at a time when he has his sights set on another presidential campaign and uses this year’s election to further subjugate to the Republican Party. Trump is mostly alone in his praise of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom he again called “clever” last week in speeches to donors and conservative activists. His often deferential Vice President Mike Pence walked away from him on the matter on Friday.

Meanwhile, the multinational alliances so consistently undermined by Trump have now allowed the West to quickly band together to punish the Russian economy with coordinated sanctions. NATO, which Trump once called “obsolete,” is flexing its muscle in response to Russian aggression.

Perhaps more fundamentally, the war is a fresh reminder, observers say, that the United States cannot simply ignore the world’s problems, though that is sometimes an attractive way to connect with voters facing their own daily problems.

“This is a brutal wake-up call to both parties that not only are we not going to be able to do less in the world,” warned Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations and a former diplomat. “We’re going to have to do more.”

Although he argued that numerous elements in both parties have shown a desire to turn their attention domestically, the current situation presents a “special problem” for Republicans and supporters of isolationism who had previously tried to portray Russia as a benign actor. .

“The whole ‘America First’ push, I would argue, was misguided in a world where what happens anywhere can and will affect us,” he added.

It is unclear whether the unity that the West has established with Russia can be sustained if the war escalates, spreads beyond Ukraine, or drags on indefinitely. And after two decades of US foreign policy failures, including the war in Iraq and the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan, many Americans are taking the moment with a grain of salt.

On the eve of Russia’s invasion, just 26% of Americans said they supported the United States playing a major role in the conflict, according to an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll, but the challenges are clear. to Trump’s approach to the world.

Sweden and Finland have abandoned their traditional neutrality and are opening up to the possibility of joining NATO, thereby expanding an alliance that Trump continued to dismiss this week. Germany, a country that Trump spent years trying to force to spend more on its defense, broke its established policy since World War II by sending anti-tank weapons and missiles to Ukraine and promising to dramatically increase its military budget.

Trump and his allies insist that Russia would never have invaded Ukraine if he had still been president. And Russia took no aggressive steps during Trump’s presidency, something former aides and others attribute rather to erratic behavior and outright threats that left world leaders unsure how Trump would respond to a provocation.

Roger Zakheim, Washington director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, credited Trump with dissuading Putin, who he said had “validated the need for allies to invest more in their security and defense.”

“I think that President Trump, at least when it comes to Ukraine, managed to dissuade Vladimir Putin. And that was because of his unpredictability, which is valuable in deterring an autocrat like Putin,” he added. Still, he said Putin’s actions had been “so aggressive, so reckless and so immoral” that it had “downplayed the difference” between different foreign policy approaches.

However, the war has brought renewed attention to Ukraine’s controversial role during Trump’s tenure, particularly the way the president used defense of the battered country as a negotiating tool to improve his position in domestic politics.

Trump was first impeached for trying to pressure Ukraine to investigate Trump’s Democratic opponent, Joe Biden, as well as his son Hunter Biden. The effort included withholding nearly $400 million in US security aid to Ukraine and leveraging a White House visit that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had requested.

Trump further promoted discredited accusations that Ukraine, not Russia, had interfered in the 2016 presidential election, repeatedly endorsing Putin’s claims rather than the assessments of America’s own spy agencies.

“Putin is the critical agent, but Trump certainly contributed to his scheme then and continued to contribute by undermining national security,” said retired US Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, the former national security council whistleblower who raised alarm about Trump’s pressure tactics. “In the end, the president undermined American foreign policy because he weakened Ukraine.”

As Trump seeks to play a significant role in this year’s election and potentially run for president again in 2024, he has shown scant interest in calibrating his approach to Putin.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who has been laying the groundwork for his own presidential bid, has abandoned the language for which he was criticized before the invasion, when he said that Putin was “very capable” and that he had “enormous respect.” for him”.

Even Tucker Carlson, the Fox News anchor who had publicly questioned why he shouldn’t side with Russia on Ukraine, has tried to walk away from his pro-Russian rhetoric, saying, “We’ve been caught by surprise.”

That has left Trump relatively isolated, defending his decision to call Putin “smart” and criticizing the response of Biden and other Western leaders, all the while calling the invasion “appalling” and “a very sad thing for the world.” world”.

“NATO has the money now, but it’s not doing the job it should,” he said this week on Fox Business. “It’s like they’re holding back.”

That earned him criticism from some within his own party.

In a speech to Republican donors, Pence strongly defended NATO and lambasted those who have defended Putin, at a time when he is also considering a presidential candidacy.

“There is no room in this party for Putin’s defenders,” he said, according to prepared remarks. “There is only room for defenders of freedom.”

Senate Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told Fox News that “there should be no confusion about Vladimir Putin. He is a ruffian. He is a killer,” McConnell said. “He’s been up to his old tricks and this won’t end well for him.”

Chris Stirewalt, a fellow at the right-wing think tank American Enterprise Institute and a contributing journalist for The Dispatch, said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is fundamentally different from the wars in Afghanistan that turned vast sections of Americans against foreign intervention. and that Trump used to his political advantage.

“Putin,” he said, “has undone much of what Trump and the nationalists in the United States had done to change the world order.”