Donald Trump he continues his hard line towards the UN and China. As soon as he took office, the American president signed an executive order, starting the process for the United States to leave the World Health Organization. In particular, among the reasons for his move, he cited “the organization’s mismanagement of the Covid-19 pandemic that broke out in Wuhan, China, and other global health crises, its failure to adopt urgent reforms and the its inability to demonstrate independence from the inappropriate political influence of WHO Member States”. This is a far from unexpected decision. Already in 2020, Trump had started the process to leave the specialized UN agency, denouncing his excessive political closeness to the Dragon: a process which, once he took office, Joe Biden he then interrupted.
Not only that. In the past few hours, the American president also announced the United States’ withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement. A move that, also in this case, the person concerned had already implemented during his first mandate. There are various interconnected reasons behind this decision. First of all, Trump wants to focus heavily on traditional energy to fight inflation and meet the working class from the Rust Belt (with one eye, in particular, turned to Pennsylvania). Secondly, the tycoon has always considered the Paris Agreement as an obstacle to the economic competitiveness of the United States against China.
But the jabs at Beijing didn’t end there. Although he has been relatively soft on the TikTok issue so far, Trumpduring his inauguration speech, declared that Washington will regain control of the Panama Canal precisely because of China’s growing influence on the structure. Not surprisingly, he also increased the dose on Greenland. “Greenland is not necessary for us, it is necessary for international security. There are Russian boats everywhere, there are Chinese boats everywhere, warships, and they (Denmark) can’t maintain it,” he said.
In short, it is clear that all these measures have a minimum common denominator: targeting the People’s Republic of China. Trump fears Beijing’s growing influence over Latin America and the Arctic. Furthermore, he does not look favorably on the political weight of the Dragon within the United Nations. “In Moscow, Tehran and Pyongyang, dictators sow chaos and instability, allying with and funding radical terrorist groups. Then they hide behind their veto power at the United Nations and the threat of nuclear war. The post-war global order is not just obsolete; now it is a weapon used against us”, he declared in the Senate last week, Marco Rubiowho has just been confirmed as Secretary of State. The goal of the new Trump administration, in other words, is to recognize the return of power politics. And behave accordingly. This is therefore a clear warning, especially in Beijing. America’s deterrence capacity, he is telling us Trumpwill be restored soon. And in the meantime, China is not sleeping soundly. “Trade wars have no winners,” the Chinese vice prime minister said Ding Xuexiangfearing new duties from the American administration. The deterrent strategy promoted by the tycoon is perhaps already starting to work.
