Is Donald Trump reviving the “madman theory” of diplomacy, introduced by Richard Nixon to instill fear in America’s adversaries? North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s description of Trump as “mentally deranged” suggests that such a ploy might be working – or else Kim is more right than he, or the rest of us, would like.
The future for the US-Russia relationship after the American attack on a key Russian ally is, like Trump himself, hard to predict. Many observers believe that outwardly, Putin is feigning anger at the move but will be patient, recognising Trump’s current difficulty in moving towards a closer relationship in view of the scrutiny he is under at home.
The first face-to-face meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump on April 6 and 7 will have profound political, economic and military implications for the world, especially the Western Pacific.
When President Xi Jinping meets his US counterpart Donald Trump, tea rather than beer might be the best way to oil the wheels of the diplomatic relationship. Xi was quick to cross the cultural divide and share an ale with former British prime minister David Cameron in 2015 but that tactic will not work for Trump, a teetotaller since the death of his brother from an alcohol-related illness in 1981 at the age of 43.
Washington, which is believed to want a woman in the U.N. role, has been backing Argentina’s foreign minister in the secretive selection process, U.N. sources say. Meanwhile, U.N. sources say Russia is angling for a female Bulgarian diplomat with family ties to the Soviet Union, a nod to its desire to see an Eastern European in the job.
While economics works well between China and the United Kingdom, it is a tricky diplomatic route for Cameron and he will have to ensure that his newfound bonhomie with Xi doesn’t make the old ally in Washington too nervous. He will have to carefully walk the fine line between keeping old, historic ties in place and nurturing his new relationship with an ambitious China that would only want more in the long run.
Reliance on soft power requires measured patience. Nations want their own way, and the world has seen a marked resurgence in use of hard power. The United States intervenes in Iraq and Syria; Russia has annexed Crimea and encourages rebels in eastern Ukraine, while China asserts broad territorial claims in the East and South China seas.
Today our partnership is robust, reliable and enduring, and it is expanding. Our relationship involves more bilateral collaboration than ever before — not just at the federal level but also at the state and local levels, between our two militaries, private sectors and civil society, writ Indian Prime Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Barack Obama.
India and China find that pragmatic flexibility trumps ideology in trade policies. Case in point: Israel.
