U.S. foreign policy The officially stated goals of the foreign policy of the United States of America, including all the bureaus and offices in the United States Department of State, as mentioned in the ''Foreign Policy Agenda'' of the Department of State, are ...

during the

presidency of Donald Trump Donald Trump's tenure as the 45th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 2017, and ended on January 20, 2021. Trump, a Republican from New York City, took office following his Electoral College victory ...

(2017–2021) was noted for its unpredictability and reneging on prior international commitments, upending diplomatic conventions, embracing political and economic

brinkmanship Brinkmanship (or brinksmanship) is the practice of trying to achieve an advantageous outcome by pushing dangerous events to the brink of active conflict. The maneuver of pushing a situation with the opponent to the brink succeeds by forcing the op ...

with most adversaries, and stronger relations with traditional allies.

Trump Trump most commonly refers to: * Donald Trump (born 1946), 45th president of the United States (2017–2021) * Trump (card games), any playing card given an ad-hoc high rank Trump may also refer to: Businesses and organizations * Donald J. T ...

's " America First" policy pursued

nationalist Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...

foreign policy objectives and prioritized bilateral relations over multinational agreements. As president, Trump described himself as a nationalist while espousing

isolationist Isolationism is a political philosophy advocating a national foreign policy that opposes involvement in the political affairs, and especially the wars, of other countries. Thus, isolationism fundamentally advocates neutrality and opposes entan ...

non-interventionist Non-interventionism or non-intervention is a political philosophy or national foreign policy doctrine that opposes interference in the domestic politics and affairs of other countries but, in contrast to isolationism, is not necessarily opposed t ...

, and

protectionist Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...

views; he personally praised some

populist Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...

neo-nationalist Neo-nationalism, or new nationalism, is an ideology and political movement built on the basic characteristics of classical nationalism. It developed to its final form by applying elements with reactionary character generated as a reaction to ...

illiberal An illiberal democracy describes a governing system in which, although elections take place, citizens are cut off from knowledge about the activities of those who exercise real power because of the lack of civil liberties; thus it does not c ...

, and

authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in the rule of law, separation of powers, and democratic votin ...

governments, while antagonizing others, even as administration diplomats nominally continued to pursue pro-democracy ideals abroad. Upon taking office, Trump relied more on military personnel than any previous administration since the

presidency of Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan's tenure as the 40th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1981, and ended on January 20, 1989. Reagan, a Republican from California, took office following a landslide victory over D ...

, and more on White House advisors than on the State Department to advise him on international relations; for example, assigning policy related to the

Middle East peace process Middle or The Middle may refer to: * Centre (geometry), the point equally distant from the outer limits. Places * Middle (sheading), a subdivision of the Isle of Man * Middle Bay (disambiguation) * Middle Brook (disambiguation) * Middle Creek ( ...

to senior advisor

Jared Kushner Jared Corey Kushner (born January 10, 1981) is an American businessman and investor. He served as a senior advisor to 45th U.S. president Donald Trump, his father-in-law. Since leaving the White House, Kushner founded Affinity Partners, a pri ...

. Former

ExxonMobil ExxonMobil Corporation (commonly shortened to Exxon) is an American multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is the largest direct descendant of John D. Rockefeller's Standard Oil, and was formed on November 30, ...

CEO

Rex Tillerson Rex Wayne Tillerson (born March 23, 1952) is an American engineer and energy executive who served as the 69th U.S. secretary of state from February 1, 2017, to March 31, 2018, under President Donald Trump. Prior to joining the Trump administ ...

was Trump's first Secretary of State, appointed for his experience and contacts in many other countries, particularly Russia. During Tillerson's tenure at the

State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

, budget cuts and Trump's reliance on White House advisors led to media reports that the State Department had been noticeably "sidelined." Former

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

director

Mike Pompeo Michael Richard Pompeo (; born December 30, 1963) is an American politician, diplomat, and businessman who served under President Donald Trump as director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from 2017 to 2018 and as the 70th United State ...

succeeded Tillerson as Secretary of State in April 2018. As part of the "America First" policy, Trump's administration reevaluated many of the U.S.'s prior multinational commitments, including withdrawing from the

Trans-Pacific Partnership The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), or Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, was a highly contested proposed trade agreement between 12 Pacific Rim economies, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singa ...

, the

INF Treaty The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty, formally the Treaty Between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Elimination of Their Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles; / ДРСМ� ...

, the

UNHRC The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), CDH is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. ...

and

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

, and the

Paris Agreement The Paris Agreement (french: Accord de Paris), often referred to as the Paris Accords or the Paris Climate Accords, is an international treaty on climate change. Adopted in 2015, the agreement covers climate change mitigation, Climate change a ...

, and urging

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

allies to increase burden sharing. The Trump administration introduced a ban on travel from certain Muslim-majority countries and recognized

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

as the capital of

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. He sought

rapprochement In international relations, a rapprochement, which comes from the French word ''rapprocher'' ("to bring together"), is a re-establishment of cordial relations between two countries. This may be done due to a mutual enemy, as was the case with Germ ...

with

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

n leader

Kim Jong-un Kim Jong-un (; , ; born 8 January 1982) is a North Korean politician who has been Supreme Leader of North Korea since 2011 and the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) since 2012. He is a son of Kim Jong-il, who was North Korea's sec ...

as part of efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula, though North Korea expanded its nuclear arsenal. Trump withdrew the U.S. from the

Iran nuclear deal The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA; fa, برنامه جامع اقدام مشترک , barnāmeye jāme'e eqdāme moshtarak (, ''BARJAM'')), commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal or Iran deal, is an agreement on the nuclear program ...

and increased

sanctions against Iran There have been a number of sanctions against Iran imposed by a number of countries, especially the United States, and international entities. Iran was the most sanctioned country in the world until it was surpassed by Russia following its inva ...

, precipitating several confrontations with Iran. He increased belligerence against

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

and

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

while overseeing drawdowns of U.S. troops from

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

Somalia Somalia, , Osmanya script: 𐒈𐒝𐒑𐒛𐒐𐒘𐒕𐒖; ar, الصومال, aṣ-Ṣūmāl officially the Federal Republic of SomaliaThe ''Federal Republic of Somalia'' is the country's name per Article 1 of thProvisional Constituti ...

, and

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

, while agreeing with the Taliban for a conditional full withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. He also increased U.S.

drone strikes Drone warfare is a form of aerial warfare using unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAV) or weaponized commercial unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). The United States, United Kingdom, Israel, China, South Korea, Iran, Italy, France, India, Pakis ...

in Africa, and continued the U.S.'s

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

on terror and against the

Islamic State An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...

terror organization, including overseeing the

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

of its leader

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi ( ar, أبو بكر البغدادي, ʾAbū Bakr al-Baḡdādī; born Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim Ali Muhammad al-Badri al-Samarrai ( ar, إبراهيم عواد إبراهيم علي محمد البدري السامرائي, ʾIb ...

in October 2019. In January 2020, Trump ordered a drone strike in Iraq which assassinated Iranian major general

Qasem Soleimani Qasem Soleimani ( fa, قاسم سلیمانی, ; 11 March 19573January 2020) was an Iranian military officer who served in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). From 1998 until his assassination in 2020, he was the commander of the Quds F ...

. The Trump administration often used economic pressure to advance its foreign policy goals.

Trump's import tariffs The Trump tariffs are a series of United States tariffs imposed during the Presidency of Donald Trump, presidency of Donald Trump as part of his "America First (policy), America First" Economic policy of the Donald Trump administration, econo ...

agitated trade partners and triggered a trade war with China. He also signed the

United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement The Agreement between the United States of America, the United Mexican States, and Canada (USMCA) Commonly known as the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) in the United States and the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement (CU ...

(USMCA), a continental trade agreement which replaced

NAFTA The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA ; es, Tratado de Libre Comercio de América del Norte, TLCAN; french: Accord de libre-échange nord-américain, ALÉNA) was an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States that crea ...

. Trump's administration brokered the Kosovo–Serbia agreement, the

Abraham Accords The Abraham Accords are a series of joint normalization statements initially between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, effective since September 15, 2020. Mediated by the United States, the initial announcement of August 13, 2020, ...

, and subsequent Arab-Israeli normalization agreements with

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

and

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

Timeline of notable events

2016

In 2020, Trump explained how some of his foreign policy goals became his rationale behind running for office: "I ran for president because I cannot watch this betrayal of our country any longer. I could not sit by as career politicians let other countries take advantage of us on trade, borders, foreign policy and national defense.""Full Transcript: President Trump's Republican National Convention Speech"
''New York Times'', August 28, 2020 In May 2016, Trump campaigned to secure American energy independence for the first time. He drew attention to China's acceptance into the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and e ...

(WTO) in 2001 as a mistake, claiming the decision had contributed to massive job losses. Consequently, he threatened in 2016 to place tariffs on Chinese products if elected, and post-election he vowed to impose tax penalties on American firms that offshored their companies.

2017

On January 23, 2017, three days after taking office, he withdrew from the

, which he deemed a "job killing partnership." Trump announced a preference for bilateral agreements; over the remainder of Trump's term, his administration produced a handful of limited bilateral agreements covering specific products or industries, with limited results. Trump pursued only one general

free trade agreement A free-trade agreement (FTA) or treaty is an agreement according to international law to form a free-trade area between the cooperating states. There are two types of trade agreements: bilateral and multilateral. Bilateral trade agreements occur ...

(FTA): the USMCA (with Canada and Mexico), which modified

. Although the U.S. under Trump eschewed FTAs, the six most important U.S. trading partners continued to negotiate and enter into FTAs, with the U.S. losing ground as a result. On April 6, 2017, in retaliation for Syrian President

Bashar al-Assad Bashar Hafez al-Assad, ', Levantine pronunciation: ; (, born 11 September 1965) is a Syrian politician who is the 19th president of Syria, since 17 July 2000. In addition, he is the commander-in-chief of the Syrian Armed Forces and the ...

's chemical weapon attack, of

sarin Sarin (NATO designation GB G-series, "B"">Nerve_agent#G-series.html" ;"title="hort for Nerve agent#G-series">G-series, "B" is an extremely toxic synthetic organophosphorus compound."Will Syria Yield to the Chemical Weapons Ban?"
''Council on Foreign Relations'', April 7, 2017 The attack drew international support and claims it was justified, citing enforcement of the

Chemical Weapons Convention The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), officially the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons and on their Destruction, is an arms control treaty administered by the Organisation for ...

(CWC). On April 27, 2017, the administration reversed the United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement, which Trump described as a "job-killing trade deal" when he was still a presidential candidate. In April 2017, the administration confronted

and Vice President Pence paid a visit to the DMZ. Tensions increased when Trump asserted in an interview, "If China is not going to solve North Korea, we will." A few months later, in June, he declared a national emergency with respect to North Korea. On June 17, North Korea released American captive

Otto Warmbier Otto Frederick Warmbier (December 12, 1994 – June 19, 2017) was an American college student who was imprisoned in North Korea in 2016 on a charge of subversion. In June 2017, he was released by North Korea in a vegetative state and died ...

who was returned to the U.S. in a comatose state and died shortly thereafter. In May 2017, Trump took his first trip abroad as president, traveling to Saudi Arabia, Israel, the West Bank, Italy, Vatican City, Belgium, and Italy. In Brussels, he addressed

North Atlantic Treaty Organization The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

(NATO) heads of state and governments, calling on each of them to "finally contribute their fair share" to the alliance. In January 2019, secretary general of NATO

Jens Stoltenberg Jens Stoltenberg (born 16 March 1959) is a Norwegian politician who has been serving as the 13th secretary general of NATO since 2014. A member of the Norwegian Labour Party, he previously served as the 34th prime minister of Norway from 2000 to ...

, thanked Trump for being "committed to NATO," professing that he deserved credit for obtaining an additional $100 billion in defense spending for the alliance. In June 2017, Trump announced that the U.S. would withdraw from the Paris Agreement to combat climate change. The withdrawal left the U.S. as one of the world's only countries outside the Paris Agreement (which consolidated each country's voluntary pledge to reduce

carbon emissions Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities strengthen the greenhouse effect, contributing to climate change. Most is carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas. The largest emitters include coal in China and larg ...

and aimed to further emissions cuts), and made the U.S. the sole country to withdraw from the agreement after entering into it.Lisa Friedman
U.S. Quits Paris Climate Agreement: Questions and Answers
''New York Times'' (November 4, 2020). Trump's withdrawal formally abandoned President Obama's goal of cutting U.S. emissions by 28% below 2005 levels by 2025. The U.S. withdrawal formally came into effect on November 4, 2020. Trump's decision to withdrawal from the agreement dismayed business leaders and U.S. alliesValerie Volcovici & Jeff Mason
Trump dismays, angers allies by abandoning global climate pact
Reuters (May 31, 2017). and was condemned by scientists, which warned that U.S. withdrawal would deepen the

climate crisis ''Climate crisis'' is a term describing global warming and climate change, and their impacts. The term and the alternative term ''climate emergency'' have been used to describe the threat of global warming to humanity (and their planet), and to u ...

.Quirin Schiermeier & Jeff Tollefson
How Scientists Reacted to the U.S. Leaving the Paris Climate Agreement
''Nature'' (June 2, 2017).Leslie Hook
Scientists warn of 'climate crisis' after US quits Paris accord
''Financial Times'' (November 5, 2019). Joe Biden, Trump's successor, re-entered the U.S. into the Paris Agreement on February 19, 2021. On December 6, 2017, Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and started the process of relocating the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem.

2018

In March 2018, Trump proposed the creation of an independent space force. Following the decision, he directed the

Department of Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philipp ...

to establish the

United States Space Force The United States Space Force (USSF) is the space service branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and the world's only independent space force. Along with its sister branch, the U.S. Air Force, the Space ...

, a new branch of the Armed Forces. It was signed into law on December 20, 2019. On May 14, 2018, the Trump administration officially moved the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to

. On May 18, 2018, Trump announced that the United States would withdraw from the

Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA; fa, برنامه جامع اقدام مشترک , barnāmeye jāme'e eqdāme moshtarak (, ''BARJAM'')), commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal or Iran deal, is an agreement on the Iranian nuclear ...

, known as the Iran Nuclear Deal. The administration had earlier put Iran "on notice" after they test-fired a missile a few days after Trump took office. On June 12, 2018, Trump and North Korean leader

met in Singapore. Trump hoped their rapport would prompt the ending of North Korea's nuclear program. Trump used "flattery, cajolery and even a slickly produced promotional video" in an attempt to persuade Kim into a peace partnership. Trump also gave Kim certain concessions, including ending military drills between the United States and South Korea, a decision that surprised both South Korea and the Pentagon. On June 19, 2018, U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley announced that the United States would withdraw from the

Human Rights Council The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), CDH is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a regional group basis. ...

. She cited the council's "chronic bias against Israel" and the human rights abuses of various sitting members, including China and Venezuela. On July 16, 2018, Trump and Russian President

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

met in Helsinki for a two-hour meeting to discuss the Syrian civil war, the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, and Russia's encroachment on Ukraine. In September 2018, the U.S., Mexico, and Canada reached an agreement to replace NAFTA with the

(USMCA). During his 2016 campaign, Trump condemned the

North American Free Trade Agreement The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA ; es, Tratado de Libre Comercio de América del Norte, TLCAN; french: Accord de libre-échange nord-américain, ALÉNA) was an agreement signed by Canada, Mexico, and the United States that crea ...

(NAFTA), declaring that if elected to the presidency, "We will either renegotiate it, or we will break it." In December 2018, Trump announced that the United States would withdraw all of the more than two thousand troops deployed in Syria, and asked the Pentagon to come up with a plan to withdraw half of those serving in Afghanistan as well.

2019

In the aftermath of the

November 2015 Paris attacks The November 2015 Paris attacks () were a series of coordinated Islamist terrorist attacks that took place on Friday, 13 November 2015 in Paris, France, and the city's northern suburb, Saint-Denis. Beginning at 9:15p.m., three suicide bombers ...

committed by ISIL, Trump reiterated his intention to eliminate ISIL. By August 2017, the Trump administration had "dramatically accelerated" the U.S.–led campaign against ISIL and recaptured almost one-third of the territory they had taken. On March 23, 2019, Trump administration officials and allies cautiously hailed the territorial collapse of the Islamic State in Syria. The administration emphasized the need to continue applying pressure by maintaining a presence in the country, while also blocking a territorial resurgence of the Islamic State. In May 2019, the "Trade War" with China took a turn for the worse. Trade talks broke down and the United States raised tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods; China reciprocated. The Trump administration also imposed new restrictions on Chinese telecom firms, labeled China a currency manipulator, and threatened to halt all private U.S. investment in China. On June 30, 2019, Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to set foot in North Korea, for a brief meeting with its leader,

Kim Jong Un Kim Jong-un (; , ; born 8 January 1982) is a North Korean politician who has been Supreme Leader of North Korea since 2011 and the leader of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) since 2012. He is a son of Kim Jong-il, who was North Korea's secon ...

."Trump takes 20 steps into North Korea, making history as first sitting US leader to enter hermit nation"
''CNN'', June 30, 2019 Kim admitted his surprise at Trump's request to meet, but accepted the offer due to their "excellent relationship" and the significance of meeting to denuclearize the Korean peninsula. On October 6, 2019, Trump said he would withdraw all remaining U.S. troops from Kurdish-controlled northern Syria. Turkey then invaded Syria to combat the Kurdish groups. The Trump administration responded by placing sanctions on Turkey, although it was a NATO ally. On December 20, 2019, Trump spoke with China's

paramount leader Paramount leader () is an informal term for the most important political figure in the People's Republic of China (PRC). The paramount leader typically controls the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Liberation Army (PLA), often hol ...

Xi Jinping Xi Jinping ( ; ; ; born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has served as the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), and thus as the paramount leader of China, s ...

, when China agreed to make "large scale" purchases of U.S. farm goods. They planned to sign a formal agreement on a "phase one trade deal" aimed at eventually ending their 18-month trade war. During their talk, Xi told Trump he was deeply concerned about "negative words and deeds" from the U.S. regarding Taiwan, Hong Kong, Xinjiang, and Tibet. Along with some tariff relief, China agreed to make various structural changes concerning intellectual property and technology issues. Actual Chinese purchases of American goods during 2020 fell far short of expectations.

2020

January 2020 saw the outbreak of what would become the worldwide

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. On May 29, Trump announced that the U.S. would cease funding of the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...

(WHO) and pull out of the agency, claiming that it had protected China while the coronavirus outbreak there spread to other countries to become a

pandemic A pandemic () is an epidemic of an infectious disease that has spread across a large region, for instance multiple continents or worldwide, affecting a substantial number of individuals. A widespread endemic (epidemiology), endemic disease wi ...

. The U.S. signed the Doha Agreement in February 2020, a peace deal with the

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state (polity), state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalism, Islamic fundamentalist, m ...

that facilitated the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan and the official conclusion of the

war in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC) *Muslim conquests of Afghanistan (637–709) *Conquest of Afghanistan by the Mongol Empire (13th century), see als ...

. In 2020, the U.S. brokered agreements that established or reestablished diplomatic and economic relations between

and four Muslim nations: the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

, and

. These "

" have been cited as Trump's main diplomatic achievement. Several of the normalization agreements involved diplomatic incentives offered by the U.S., which took steps to remove Sudan from the U.S.'s state sponsors of terrorism list, to recognize Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed region of

Western Sahara Western Sahara ( '; ; ) is a disputed territory on the northwest coast and in the Maghreb region of North and West Africa. About 20% of the territory is controlled by the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), while the r ...

, and to sell

F-35 The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is an American family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather stealth multirole combat aircraft that is intended to perform both air superiority and strike missions. It is also able to provide elect ...

stealth fighter jets to the UAE. The agreements between Israel and the UAE, signed in August 2020, were the first between Israel and an Arab country in 25 years. A normalization agreement between Bahrain and Israel was signed in September 2020, providing for diplomatic relations (exchanging ambassadors and opening embassies), the establishment of direct flights, and cooperation in health care, technology, agriculture, and other mutual industries."Bahrain to establish diplomatic relations with Israel as Trump touts diplomatic breakthroughs in the Middle East"
''Washington Post'', September 11, 2020 Similar agreements to normalize ties were made between Sudan and Israel in October 2020 (the agreement was for establishment of direct flights; an "end to the state of belligerence"; and direct economic and trade negotiations, with a focus on agriculture, but not full diplomatic relations) and between Israel and Morocco in December 2020. On September 4, 2020, after U.S.-brokered talks,

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

and

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

signed an economic normalization agreement, which also resulted in Serbia agreeing to move its embassy to Jerusalem, and mutual recognition between Israel and Kosovo. In January, at the urging of European leaders, the U.S. brokered an agreement to restore flights between the capitals of Serbia and Kosovo for the first time in more than two decades.

Appointments

Mark Kevin Lloyd, who began his role as the religious freedom adviser at the

U.S. Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 ...

(USAID) on May 26, 2020, has a history of making anti-Muslim statements. Several Muslim civil rights groups objected to his appointment. Lloyd had previously worked for the Trump campaign in Virginia. Merritt Corrigan, the deputy White House liaison at USAID, was fired on August 3, 2020, the same day she made a series of anti-LGBT tweets. These included her complaint that the US requires other countries to "celebrate sexual deviancy" to qualify for aid. Corrigan had made similar statements in the past.

Americas

On March 3, 2019,

National Security Advisor A national security advisor serves as the chief advisor to a national government on matters of security. The advisor is not usually a member of the government's cabinet but is usually a member of various military or security councils. National sec ...

John Bolton John Robert Bolton (born November 20, 1948) is an American attorney, diplomat, Republican consultant, and political commentator. He served as the 25th United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to 2006, and as the 26th United Sta ...

invoked the

Monroe Doctrine The Monroe Doctrine was a United States foreign policy position that opposed European colonialism in the Western Hemisphere. It held that any intervention in the political affairs of the Americas by foreign powers was a potentially hostile ac ...

in describing the Trump administration's policy in the Americas, saying "In this administration, we're not afraid to use the word Monroe Doctrine ... It's been the objective of American presidents going back to

resident Resident may refer to: People and functions * Resident minister, a representative of a government in a foreign country * Resident (medicine), a stage of postgraduate medical training * Resident (pharmacy), a stage of postgraduate pharmaceuti ...

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

to have a completely democratic hemisphere." In September 2019, following John Bolton's departure from the administration, Trump claimed that Bolton's views were "not necessarily tougher" than his own: "in some cases, he thought it was too tough what we were doing". Trump claimed that his own views on

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

and

were "far stronger" than Bolton's and stated that he was "holding me back". In May 2019, Trump offered a different view of Bolton: "I actually temper John, which is pretty amazing."

Argentina

President Trump hosted President

Mauricio Macri Mauricio Macri (; born 8 February 1959) is an Argentine businessman and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 2015 to 2019. He has been the leader of the Republican Proposal (PRO) party since its founding in 2005. He previou ...

in Washington, D.C. in April 2017. They met at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

on April 27 to talk about trade. When the ARA ''San Juan'' submarine went missing on November 15, 2017, during a routine patrol in the South Atlantic off the coast of Argentina, Trump offered the help of the United States to find the submarine.

Brazil

The two countries re-approached with the victory of the right-wing president,

Jair Bolsonaro Jair Messias Bolsonaro (; born 21 March 1955) is a Brazilian politician and retired military officer who has been the 38th president of Brazil since 1 January 2019. He was elected in 2018 as a member of the Social Liberal Party, which he turn ...

, in the

2018 Brazilian general election General elections were held in Brazil on 7 October 2018 to elect the president, National Congress and state governors. As no candidate in the presidential election received more than 50% of the vote in the first round, a runoff round was held ...

. On the first official visit of the Brazilian president to the United States in March 2019, Trump announced Brazil as

Major non-NATO ally Major non-NATO ally (MNNA) is a designation given by the United States government to close allies that have strategic working relationships with the US Armed Forces but are not members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). While the s ...

. In May, the U.S. government, through Kimberly Breier, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, announced formal support for Brazil's entry into the

OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate e ...

Canada

Trump met with

Canadian Prime Minister The prime minister of Canada (french: premier ministre du Canada, link=no) is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the confidence of a majority the elected House of Commons; as such ...

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since 2 ...

in February 2017 at the White House. Trudeau was the third world leader that Trump hosted since his inauguration as president, after the United Kingdom's Theresa May and Japan's Shinzo Abe. At the meeting Trump claimed that he viewed the United States' relationship with

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

as being different from its relationship with Mexico, and said he only foresaw minor adjustments to the Canadian side of

. At the meeting Trump and Trudeau also discussed increased cooperation at the

Canada–United States border The border between Canada and the United States is the longest international border in the world. The terrestrial boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Can ...

, combating opioid abuse, clean energy, and establishing a joint council to promote women in business. In April 2017, the Trump administration took action on the longstanding

Canada–United States softwood lumber dispute The Canada–U.S. softwood lumber dispute is one of the largest and most enduring trade disputes between both nations. This conflict arose in 1982 and its effects are still seen today. British Columbia, the major Canadian exporter of softwood l ...

, raising the possibility of a trade war. Following Trump's comment that Canada's lumber trade practices are unfair, the

United States Department of Commerce The United States Department of Commerce is an executive department of the U.S. federal government concerned with creating the conditions for economic growth and opportunity. Among its tasks are gathering economic and demographic data for bu ...

announced plans to impose a retroactive duty of 30–40% on Canadian wood shipments to the United States. Canada's minister for trade said, "Canada will not be deterred and will vigorously defend our industry." The Canadian dollar fell to a 14-month low on the announcement. In June 2018, Trump imposed tariffs with 25% on Canadian

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

and 10% on Canadian

aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. I ...

. In July 2018, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau imposed retaliatory tariffs with 25% on American steel and 10% on American aluminium. On June 20, 2019, Trump and Prime Minister

met and held "positive" talks at the White House on topics regarding ratifying the

, the detentions of

Huawei Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. ( ; ) is a Chinese multinational technology corporation headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. It designs, develops, produces and sells telecommunications equipment, consumer electronics and various smar ...

CFO

Meng Wanzhou Meng Wanzhou (; born 13 February 1972), also known as Cathy Meng and Sabrina Meng, also informally known in China as the "Princess of Huawei", is a Chinese business executive. She is the deputy chair of the board and chief financial officer ( ...

and Canadian nationals

Michael Spavor Michael Peter Todd Spavor (born 1976) is a Canadian consultant who has worked extensively in North Korea. He is the director and founding member of Paektu Cultural Exchange, a NGO that facilitates sports, cultural, Tourism in North Korea, touri ...

and Michael Kovrig, confronting China, and tariff negotiations. Trump called Trudeau a "friend" and, following Trudeau's trip, both Canadian and U.S. officials and media generally considered the talks constructive and helped thaw relations between the two allies, which had noticeably chilled in the early years of Trump's presidency.

Caribbean

During a summer 2017 meeting about immigration, Trump reportedly objected to receiving immigrants from

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

, reportedly saying "they all have

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

." The White House denied the report. During a meeting with congressional leaders on January 11, 2018, Trump complained about the number of immigrants from Haiti, saying "Why do we need more Haitians, take them out." He then referred to Haiti and

El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning " The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south b ...

, as well as unspecified African nations, as "shithole countries", although specific facts and details about these remarks were disputed.

Chile

Trump called President

Sebastián Piñera Miguel Juan Sebastián Piñera Echenique OMCh (; born 1 December 1949) is a Chilean billionaire businessman and politician who served as president of Chile from 2010 to 2014 and again from 2018 to 2022. The son of a Christian Democratic polit ...

in January 2018, months before his return to

La Moneda Palace Palacio de La Moneda (, ''Palace of the Mint''), or simply La Moneda, is the seat of the President of the Republic of Chile. It also houses the offices of three cabinet ministers: Interior, General Secretariat of the Presidency and General Secreta ...

and talked about the

Chile–United States Free Trade Agreement The United States-Chile Free Trade Agreement is a free trade agreement between the United States and Chile signed on June 6, 2003. The pact came into force on January 1, 2004. On that date, tariffs on 90% of U.S. exports to Chile and 95% of Chil ...

, the

tax reform Tax reform is the process of changing the way taxes are collected or managed by the government and is usually undertaken to improve tax administration or to provide economic or social benefits. Tax reform can include reducing the level of taxatio ...

approved by the U.S. Senate, the

2017–2018 Iranian protests Public protests took place in several cities in Iran beginning on 28 December 2017 and continued into early 2018. The first protest took place in Mashhad, Iran's second-largest city by population, initially focused on the Economy of Iran, econo ...

, and especially on the

Crisis in Venezuela The crisis in Venezuela is an ongoing socioeconomic and political crisis that began in Venezuela during the presidency of Hugo Chávez and has worsened in Nicolás Maduro's presidency. It has been marked by hyperinflation, escalating starvation ...

. President Trump hosted President Piñera in Washington, D.C. in September 2018. They met at the White House on September 28. Chile was originally scheduled to host APEC 2019 where Trump planned to sign a trade deal with the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

to end a

trade war A trade war is an economic conflict often resulting from extreme protectionism in which states raise or create tariffs or other trade barriers against each other in response to trade barriers created by the other party. If tariffs are the exclus ...

, however the 2019 Chilean protests happened. President Trump called Piñera and denounced "foreign efforts to undermine Chilean institutions, democracy, or society" and called Chile "an important ally, as it works to peacefully restore national order." Trump insisted on going to Chile before the definitive cancellation of the event saying "I know you have some difficulties at the moment in Chile. But I know the Chileans and I'm sure they'll be able to work it out... We are considering the possibility of getting ahead of schedule to sign a very important part of the agreement with China... much earlier". In 2020 Piñera and Trump talked about the

Cuba

During the campaign, Trump expressed his opposition to the restoration of full diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba achieved in July 2015. Trump said that he would only restore full diplomatic relations with Cuba if the Cuban regime met his demands to restore

political freedom Political freedom (also known as political autonomy or political agency) is a central concept in history and political thought and one of the most important features of democratic societies.Hannah Arendt, "What is Freedom?", ''Between Past and F ...

s and free

political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although n ...

s. This represented a shift from his position expressed in September 2015 when he said that the opening with Cuba was "fine. But we should have made a better deal." Trump also said that he opposed the

Cuban Adjustment Act The Cuban Adjustment Act (in Spanish, Ley de Ajuste Cubano), Public Law 89-732, is a United States federal law enacted on November 2, 1966. Passed by the 89th United States Congress and signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson, the law applies ...

, which allows any Cuban who reaches U.S. soil to remain in the country legally and apply for United States permanent residency. On June 16, 2017, Trump announced that he was cancelling the Obama administration's previous deals with

, while also expressing hope that a new deal could be negotiated between Cuba and the United States. On November 1, 2018,

John R. Bolton John Robert Bolton (born November 20, 1948) is an American attorney, diplomat, Republican consultant, and political commentator. He served as the 25th United States Ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to 2006, and as the 26th United Stat ...

gave a speech in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

in which he named Cuba as one of three countries that make up a " troika of tyranny." On January 12, 2021, Cuba was readded to the

State Sponsor of Terrorism State-sponsored terrorism is terrorist violence carried out with the active support of national governments provided to violent non-state actors. States can sponsor terrorist groups in several ways, including but not limited to funding terrorist ...

list with Secretary of State

citing "repeatedly providing support for acts of international terrorism" by harboring U.S. fugitives as well as Colombian rebel leaders. Cuba's support for

Nicolás Maduro Nicolás Maduro Moros (; born 23 November 1962) is a Venezuelan politician and president of Venezuela since 2013, with his presidency under dispute since 2019. Beginning his working life as a bus driver, Maduro rose to become a trade unio ...

in the presidential crisis, which Pompeo said had allowed the Maduro administration to maintain power and create "a permissive environment for international terrorists to live and thrive within Venezuela", was another reason for the redesignation. The redesignation came just eight days before Trump's presidency ended on January 20 at noon.

Greenland

President Trump Meets with the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Denmark (49170427867)

In August 2019, Trump expressed interest in buying the territory of

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

from the country

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. In reaction, Greenland's foreign ministry declared that the territory was not for sale. Citing Denmark's reluctance to discuss the purchase, days later Trump canceled a scheduled September trip to Copenhagen. The Trump administration declared

rare-earth mineral A rare-earth mineral contains one or more rare-earth elements as major metal constituents. Rare-earth minerals are usually found in association with alkaline to peralkaline igneous complexes, in pegmatites associated with alkaline magmas and in o ...

s to be vital to national security. With Chinese companies investing in mining of Greenland's abundant resources, the U.S. signed in 2019 an agreement to fund an aerial survey of mineral resources in Gardar.

Mexico

During the campaign

During the campaign Trump emphasized U.S. border security and

illegal immigration Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwar ...

as signature issues. He stated, "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. .... They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. Their rapists. And some, I assume, are good people." He also talked about drugs and infectious diseases "pouring across the border". In campaign speeches Trump repeatedly pledged to build a wall along the U.S.'s southern border, saying that Mexico would pay for its construction through increased border-crossing fees and NAFTA tariffs.Kate Drew
This is what Trump's border wall could cost US: A roughly 2,000-mile fence on the Mexican border would cost tens of billions
CNBC (October 9, 2015). Trump said his proposed wall would be "a real wall. Not a toy wall like we have now." After a meeting with Mexican President

Enrique Peña Nieto Enrique Peña Nieto (; born 20 July 1966), commonly referred to by his initials EPN, is a Mexican politician who served as the 64th president of Mexico from 1 December 2012 to 30 November 2018. A member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party ...

on August 31, 2016, Trump said that they "didn't discuss" who would pay for the border wall. Nieto contradicted that later that day, saying that he at the start of the meeting "made it clear that Mexico will not pay for the wall". Later that day, Trump reiterated his position that Mexico will pay to build an "impenetrable" wall on the Southern border. Trump also vowed to impose tariffs — in the range of 15 to 35 percent — on companies that move their operations to Mexico. He specifically criticized the Ford Motor Co.,

Carrier Corporation Carrier Global Corporation is an American multinational heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC), refrigeration, and fire and security equipment corporation based in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Carrier was founded in 1915 as an independ ...

, and

Mondelez International Mondelez International, Inc. ( ), often styled Mondelēz, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational confectionery, food industry, food, holding and drink industry, beverage and snack food company based in Chicago. Mondelez has an ...

. And he condemned the

(NAFTA), saying that if elected president, "We will either renegotiate it, or we will break it."Jill Colvin
Trump: NAFTA trade deal a 'disaster,' says he'd 'break' it
Associated Press (September 25, 2015).Mark Thoma
Is Donald Trump right to call NAFTA a "disaster"?
CBS News (October 5, 2015).

During the administration

Trump's rhetoric as a candidate and as president "cranked up the tension in US-Mexico relations to a high not seen in decades". On January 25, 2017, Trump signed an executive order calling for "immediate construction of a physical wall on the southern border". He reiterated that Mexico will eventually pay for the wall. Mexican President

had been scheduled to meet with Trump at the White House on January 31. However, on January 26 Peña Nieto called off the visit, not citing a reason. The two leaders spoke by telephone on January 27. In statements afterward they acknowledged their differences on the issue and said they intend to work them out, as well as other issues such as security and trade. Polls also show 5 percent of Mexicans trust Trump's decisions and role in international affairs. The survey by the

Pew Research Center The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan American think tank (referring to itself as a "fact tank") based in Washington, D.C. It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the w ...

said 93 percent of Mexicans had "no confidence in the U.S. president to do the right thing regarding world affairs." The president's decision for a wall along the Mexican border had a proposed 2018 budget that included a request for $1.6 billion to begin construction. A November 2017

Quinnipiac University Poll The Quinnipiac University Poll is a public opinion polling center based at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. It surveys public opinion in Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, V ...

found that 64% of voters oppose building the wall and data showed only 33% supported the idea. Funding for the border wall remained a divisive topic well into 2019, with a partial government shutdown beginning in December 2018 after Trump refused to sign a budget bill that didn't have appropriated funding for the border wall. However, both countries manage to replace the

(NAFTA) with the

(USMCA) in 2018. Peña Nieto's successor,

Andrés Manuel López Obrador Andrés Manuel López Obrador (; born 13 November 1953), also known by his initials AMLO, is a Mexican politician who has been serving as the 65th president of Mexico since 1 December 2018. He previously served as Head of Government of Mexico ...

managed to have a cordial relationship with Trump, the latter also offered him his personal treatment against COVID-19 when he contracted it and they had a "pact of silence" on the border wall.

Nicaragua

Over the course of the civil unrest in Nicaragua that started in April 2018, the Trump administration placed numerous sanctions and condemnations against President

Daniel Ortega José Daniel Ortega Saavedra (; born 11 November 1945) is a Nicaraguans, Nicaraguan revolutionary and politician serving as President of Nicaragua since 2007. Previously he was leader of Nicaragua from 1979 to 1990, first as coordinator of the ...

and his Sandinista government for human rights abuses. The first set of sanctions took place in early July 2018 when under Magnitsky, three top Sandinista officials had their visas revoked. More sanctions and condemnations rolled in after U.S. National Security Advisor

named Nicaragua as part of a troika of tyranny, including on November 27, 2018, when Trump issued an executive order targeting the First Lady and Vice President of Nicaragua and her aide Néstor Moncada Lau, and later on December 20, 2018, when Trump signed then-Florida Congresswoman

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (; born Ileana Carmen Ros y Adato, July 15, 1952) is a politician and lobbyist from Miami, Florida, who represented from 1989 to 2019. By the end of her tenure, she was the most senior U.S. Representative from Florida. She ...

's Nicaraguan Investment Conditionality Act (NICA) into law. On April 17, 2019, shortly before the one-year anniversary of the unrest, the Trump Administration announced sanctions on the Nicaraguan bank BANCORP and on Laureano Ortega Murillo, who is one of President Ortega's sons. After Evo Morales' resignation in Bolivia, Trump issued a statement in reaction that Nicaragua's

and Venezuela's

regimes, both of which he viewed as illegitimate, should be warned.

Peru

President Trump hosted President

Pedro Pablo Kuczynski Pedro is a masculine given name. Pedro is the Spanish, Portuguese, and Galician name for ''Peter''. Its French equivalent is Pierre while its English and Germanic form is Peter. The counterpart patronymic surname of the name Pedro, meaning ...

in Washington, D.C. in February 2017. They met at the White House on February 24 to discuss issues in Latin America. Trump expressed gratitude for Peru's close relations with the United States in protecting interests in Latin America, such as sanctions against Venezuela and corruption probes. Kuczynski brought up a minor purchase of military equipment from the United States for Peru. Kuczynski later recalled that Trump privately mentioned to Kuczynski that "You don't look a day over 90." Kuczynski was 79 at the time.

Venezuela

In August 2017, following months of protests in Venezuela against President

and the election of a Constituent Assembly which consolidated Maduro's power, the Trump administration described the Venezuelan government as a "dictatorship." Trump further stated on August 11, 2017, a week after the Constituent National Assembly was sworn in, that "Venezuela is not very far away and the people are suffering, and they are dying" and that the United States had "many options for Venezuela," including a possible "military option." At the time, Trump's advisers, including then-

United States National Security Advisor The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (APNSA), commonly referred to as the National Security Advisor (NSA),The National Security Advisor and Staff: p. 1. is a senior aide in the Executive Office of the President, based at t ...

H. R. McMaster Herbert Raymond McMaster (born July 24, 1962) is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who served as the 25th United States National Security Advisor from 2017 to 2018. He is also known for his roles in the Gulf War, Operation Endurin ...

, strongly discouraging Trump from military intervention in Venezuela, explaining that Latin American governments were against foreign intervention in the region, though Trump raised some questions about the option. However, when meeting with Latin American leaders during the

seventy-second session of the United Nations General Assembly The Seventy-second Session of the United Nations General Assembly opened on 12 September 2017. The President of the United Nations General Assembly was from the Eastern European Group. Organisation for the session President Slovakian Foreig ...

, Trump discussed possible United States military intervention in Venezuela, to which they all denied the idea. Following these discussions, the Trump administration instead pursued targeted sanctions against officials within the Venezuelan government. On January 23, 2019, during the

Venezuelan presidential crisis The Venezuelan presidential crisis is an ongoing political crisis concerning the leadership and the legitimate president of Venezuela; the office of the president has been contested since 10 January 2019, with the nation and the world divided ...

, Venezuela broke ties with the United States following Trump's announcement of recognizing

Juan Guaidó Juan Gerardo Guaidó Márquez (born 28 July 1983) is a Venezuelan politician, a former member of the Social democracy, social-democratic Popular Will party, and federal deputy to the National Assembly (Venezuela), National Assembly representing ...

, the president of Venezuela's

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

, as the interim President of Venezuela. On February 18, 2019, Trump warned members of Venezuela's military to renounce loyalty to Nicolás Maduro. The U.S. continued to show support for Juan Guaidó during the attempted April 30 uprising. Venezuela is one of the three countries condemned in John Bolton's " Troika of Tyranny" speech in Miami. Trump also issued a warning to Maduro, along with

of Nicaragua, following the downfall of Evo Morales in Bolivia.

Asia

Afghanistan

On August 21, 2017, Trump stated that he wanted to expand the American presence in Afghanistan, without giving details on how. Trump did not formulate any deadlines or specific purposes to be met, only stating that a U.S. withdrawal was no option now because it would play into the hands of terrorists and put at risk the safety of the U.S. and its allies. Trump said that presently 20 U.S.-designated terrorist organizations are active in Afghanistan and Pakistan. However, according to

Barkha Dutt Barkha Dutt is an Indian television journalist and author. She has been a reporter and news anchor at NDTV and Tiranga TV. She currently runs her own digital news channel called 'MoJo Story'. She is also an opinion columnist with ''The Hindus ...

of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', this statement contradicted the official U.S. government list, which only lists 13 such organizations there.'Trump gets it right on Afghanistan and Pakistan'
''

'', August 24, 2017. Retrieved August 30, 2017.

spokesman

Zabiullah Mujahid Zabihullah Mujahid ( ps, ; ''Ẕabīḥullāh Mujāhid'' ; also spelled Dhabih Allah Mujahid) is an Afghan official Central spokesman for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan since 25 October 2021 and Deputy Ministry of Information and Culture si ...

condemned Trump's speech: "It looks like America does not want to put an end to its longest war and instead of realizing the realities, is still arrogant on its might and force". On September 19, 2017, the Trump administration deployed another 3,000 U.S. troops to Afghanistan. This added to the approximately 11,000 U.S. troops already serving in Afghanistan, bringing the total to at least 14,000 U.S. troops stationed in the country. On February 5, 2019, the Senate voted overwhelmingly to rebuke Trump for his decisions to withdraw troops from Syria and Afghanistan. Drafted by majority leader

Mitch McConnell Addison Mitchell McConnell III (born February 20, 1942) is an American politician and retired attorney serving as the senior United States senator from Kentucky and the Senate minority leader since 2021. Currently in his seventh term, McConne ...

, the measure was supported by nearly all Republicans. On February 29, 2020, the Trump administration signed the Doha Agreement, a conditional peace agreement with the Taliban, which calls for the withdrawal of foreign troops in 14 months if the Taliban uphold the terms of the agreement. Trump said "it is time" to bring U.S. soldiers home from Afghanistan. Trump's successor, Joe Biden, later extended the deadline for the withdrawal to September 11, 2021, leading Trump to comment in April 2021 that "we can and should get out earlier", that "we should keep as close" to the May 1, 2021, deadline Trump had set, and that the withdrawal was "a wonderful and positive thing to do". As part of the February 2020 deal, the U.S. agreed to the release of 5,000 Taliban members who were imprisoned by the Afghan government; some of these ex-prisoners went on to join the

2021 Taliban offensive A military offensive by the Taliban insurgent group and other allied militants led to the fall of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan based in Kabul and marked the end of the nearly 20-year-old War in Afghanistan, that had begun following the ...

that felled the Afghan government.

China, Taiwan, and the South China Sea

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump welcome Xi Jinping and Peng Liyuan to Mar-a-Lago

Trump's presidency led to a shift in U.S. relations with China. During the campaign Trump accused the

(PRC) of

currency manipulation Currency intervention, also known as foreign exchange market intervention or currency manipulation, is a monetary policy operation. It occurs when a government or central bank buys or sells foreign currency in exchange for its own domestic curr ...

.Doug Palmer & Ben Schreckinger
Trump's trade views vows to declare China a currency manipulator on Day One
''Politico'' (November 10, 2015). He pledged to carry out "swift, robust and unequivocal" action against Chinese piracy,

counterfeit To counterfeit means to imitate something authentic, with the intent to steal, destroy, or replace the original, for use in illegal transactions, or otherwise to deceive individuals into believing that the fake is of equal or greater value tha ...

American goods, and theft of U.S.

trade secret Trade secrets are a type of intellectual property that includes formulas, practices, processes, designs, instruments, patterns, or compilations of information that have inherent economic value because they are not generally known or readily asc ...

s and

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

. He also condemned China's "illegal

export subsidies Export subsidy is a government policy to encourage export of goods and discourage sale of goods on the domestic market through direct payments, low-cost loans, tax relief for exporters, or government-financed international advertising. An export ...

and lax labor and environmental standards." In January 2016, Trump proposed a 45 percent

tariff A tariff is a tax imposed by the government of a country or by a supranational union on imports or exports of goods. Besides being a source of revenue for the government, import duties can also be a form of regulation of foreign trade and poli ...

on Chinese exports to the United States to give "American workers a level playing field."Maggie Haberman
Donald Trump Says He Favors Big Tariffs on Chinese Exports
''New York Times'' (January 7, 2016).Binyamin Appelaum

''New York Times'' (March 10, 2016). He dismissed possible Chinese reactions, such as sales of

U.S. bonds United States Treasury securities, also called Treasuries or Treasurys, are government debt instruments issued by the United States Department of the Treasury to finance government spending as an alternative to taxation. Since 2012, U.S. gov ...

or instituting a trade war, as unlikely and unimportant. On December 2, 2016, as president-elect, he accepted a congratulatory telephone call from

President of the Republic of China The president of the Republic of China, now often referred to as the president of Taiwan, is the head of state of the Republic of China (ROC), as well as the commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces. The position once had aut ...

(

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

)

Tsai Ing-wen Tsai Ing-wen (; born 31 August 1956) is a Taiwanese politician serving as president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since 2016. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Tsai is the first female president of Taiwan. She served as ...

. That was the first such contact with Taiwan by a U.S. president-elect or president since 1979 and provoked the People's Republic of China to lodge a diplomatic protest ("stern representations"). Trump suggested he didn't feel bound by America's traditional 'one China' policy but considered it open to negotiation. At his confirmation hearing in January 2017, Secretary of State-designate

expressed strong opposition to the Chinese practice since 2014 of building artificial islands in the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...

as a way of claiming sovereignty over it, saying China should be blocked from accessing the islands. Portions of the South China Sea are claimed as territorial waters by multiple nations including the PRC, ROC, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and the Philippines. On January 23, 2017, White House spokesman

Sean Spicer Sean Michael Spicer (born September 23, 1971) is a former American political aide who served as the 30th White House Press Secretary and as White House Communications Director under President Donald Trump in 2017. Spicer was communications dire ...

said "It's a question of if he_Spratly_Islands.html" ;"title="Spratly_Islands.html" ;"title="he Spratly Islands">he Spratly Islands">Spratly_Islands.html" ;"title="he Spratly Islands">he Spratly Islandsare in fact in international waters and not part of China proper, then yeah, we're going to make sure that we defend international territories from being taken over by one country." Donald Trump and Xi Jinping meets at 2018 G20 Summit

Donald Trump and Xi Jinping meets at 2018 G20 Summit

President Trump at the G20 (48162295476)

On February 4, on a visit to Japan, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, James Mattis reaffirmed Washington's commitment under the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security Between the United States and Japan, Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan to defending Japan, including the Senkaku Islands in the

East China Sea The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated b ...

that are claimed by China. On February 9, Trump reaffirmed American commitment to the One-China policy in a telephone call with

Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victoriou ...

general secretary

. The call was described as cordial and as "putting an end to the extended chill" in the relationship between the two countries. The relations significantly deteriorated in 2018 and in 2019 when Trump launched a trade war against China, banned US companies from selling equipment to

, increased visa restrictions on Chinese nationality students and scholars and designated China as a "

currency manipulator Currency manipulator is a designation applied by United States government authorities, such as the United States Department of the Treasury, to countries that engage in what is called “unfair currency practices” that give them a trade advantage. ...

". On November 27, 2019, Trump signed the

Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019 (HKHRDA)Naomi Xu ElegantThe U.S. Senate Passed 2 Bills Supporting Hong Kong Protesters. But They Might Do More Harm Than Good, ''Fortune'' (November 20, 2019). (; ) is a United States federal ...

to impose sanctions against

Mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...

and

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

officials considered responsible for human rights abuses in Hong Kong The passage of the bill was supported by pro-democracy activists in

, and in 2019 received near-unanimous support in Congress.Simon Denyer & Tiffany Liang
China says Trump is on 'edge of precipice' as Hong Kong rights bill hits his desk
, ''Washington Post'' (November 21, 2019). On January 24, 2020, in the early stages of the

, Trump tweeted that "China has been working very hard to contain the Coronavirus. The United States greatly appreciates their efforts and transparency." Trump later referred to the coronavirus as "Chinese virus". During an April 15 White House news conference, Trump said the U.S. government is trying to determine if the COVID-19 virus emanated from the

Wuhan Institute of Virology The Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (WIV; ) is a research institute on virology administered by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), which reports to the State Council of the People's Republic of China. The institute ...

. By May 2020 relations had reached a new low as both sides were accusing the other of guilt for the worldwide coronavirus epidemic. Washington mobilized a campaign of investigations, prosecutions and export restrictions. Beijing stepped up military activities in the contested South China Sea, and launched denunciations of American Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Chinese officials have publicly speculated that the American military deliberately unleashed the virus in China. American polls show the public had increasingly negative views of China. On June 17, 2020, Trump signed the

Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act The ''Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020'' (S. 3744) is a United States federal law that requires various federal U.S. government bodies to report on human rights abuses by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Chinese government again ...

, which authorizes the imposition of U.S. sanctions against Chinese government officials responsible for detention camps holding more than 1 million members of the country's Uyghur

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

minority.

Trump on China - Putting America First (November 2, 2020), front cover

On July 9, 2020, the Trump administration imposed sanctions and visa restrictions against senior Chinese officials, including

Chen Quanguo Chen Quanguo (; born November 1955) is a retiring Chinese politician and the current deputy head of the CCP Central Rural Work Leading Group. Between 2017 and 2022, he was a member of the 19th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party and was pre ...

Zhu Hailun Zhu Hailun (; born 1 January 1958) is a Chinese politician who is the current vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the People's Congress of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Previously he served as the deputy party secretary of the Xinji ...

, Wang Mingshan () and Huo Liujun (). With sanctions, they and their immediate relatives are barred from entering the US and will have US-based assets frozen. The sanction is based on the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act. On July 14, 2020, Trump signed the

Hong Kong Autonomy Act The Hong Kong Autonomy Act is legislation passed by the United States Congress following the enactment in June 2020 by the Chinese Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of the Hong Kong national security law. The Act was signed ...

, which is sanctioning Chinese officials and entities for China's "repressive actions" against the people of Hong Kong, and issued an executive order ending the territory's preferential treatment by the U.S.; The law authorizes the State and Treasury departments to impose sanctions on those involved in imposing the Hong Kong security law, and also targeted banks involved in significant transactions with offenders. On July 22, 2020, the US government ordered Chinese diplomats to close the Chinese Consulate-General in Houston and vacate within 72 hours, triggering a diplomatic backlash from Chinese officials. Boston College political scientist Robert S. Ross said that the Trump "administration would like to fully decouple from China. No trade, no cultural exchanges, no political exchanges, no cooperation on anything that resembles common interests." Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman

Wang Wenbin Wang may refer to: Names * Wang (surname) (王), a common Chinese surname * Wāng (汪), a less common Chinese surname * Titles in Chinese nobility * A title in Korean nobility * A title in Mongolian nobility Places * Wang River in Thailand ...

issued a statement in response requesting the U.S. to reverse the closure, threatening reciprocal actions otherwise. With the US not backing down on its earlier directive, on July 24, Chinese authorities order the closure of the U.S. Consulate-General in Chengdu. The White House urged China later on that day to not engage in "tit-for-tat retaliation." On July 23, 2020,

United States Secretary of State The United States secretary of state is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is one of the highest ranking members of the president's Ca ...

announced the end of what he called "blind engagement" with the Chinese government. He also criticized

general secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

as "a true believer in a bankrupt totalitarian ideology." In August 2020,

Carrie Lam Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor ( Cheng; ; born 13 May 1957) is a retired Hong Kong politician who served as the 4th Chief Executive of Hong Kong from 2017 to 2022. She served as Chief Secretary for Administration between 2012 and 2017 and Secr ...

and ten other

Hong Kong government The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government, refers to the Executive (government), executive authorities of Hong Kong Special administrative regions of China, ...

officials were sanctioned by the United States Department of the Treasury under an executive order for undermining Hong Kong's autonomy. The sanction is based on the Hong Kong Autonomy Act and Lam would be listed in the

Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List The Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List, also known as the SDN List, is a United States government sanctions/embargo measure targeting U.S.-designated terrorists, officials and beneficiaries of certain authoritarian regimes, a ...

. On August 9, 2020, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary

Alex Azar Alex Michael Azar II (; born June 17, 1967) is an American attorney, businessman, lobbyist, and former pharmaceutical executive who served as the United States secretary of health and human services from 2018 to 2021. Azar was nominated to his p ...

visited Taiwan to meet President

, the first visit by an American official since the break in diplomatic relations between Washington and Taipei in 1979. On August 13, 2020, U.S. Department of State designated the

Confucius Institute Confucius Institutes (CI; ) are public educational and cultural promotion programs funded and arranged currently by the , a government-organized non-governmental organization (GONGO) under the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic o ...

U.S. Center as a foreign mission of the PRC, "recognizing CIUS for what it is: an entity advancing Beijing's global propaganda and malign influence campaign on U.S. campuses and K-12 classrooms. Confucius Institutes are funded by the PRC and part of the Chinese Communist Party's global influence and propaganda apparatus." On September 22, 2020, Trump mentioned during the 75th Session of the United Nations General Assembly that "China locked down travel domestically while allowing flights to leave China and infect the world" in regard to

, then he added, "The Chinese government and the

— which is virtually controlled by China — falsely declared that there was no evidence of

human-to-human transmission Human-to-human transmission (HHT) is an epidemiologic vector, especially in case the disease is borne by individuals known as superspreaders. In these cases, the basic reproduction number of the virus, which is the average number of additional pe ...

." He also accused China that it "dumps millions and millions of tons of plastic and trash into the oceans, overfishes other countries' waters, destroys vast swaths of coral reef, and emits more toxic mercury into the atmosphere than any country anywhere in the world. China's carbon emissions are nearly twice what the U.S." In December 2020, the ''New York Times'' reported that China had paid bounties to

-linked militants for killing U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. On January 20, 2021, China imposed sanctions against outgoing US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, former secretary of health and human services

, former under secretary of state Keith J. Krach, outgoing US ambassador to the United Nations

Kelly Craft Kelly Dawn Craft (; born February 24, 1962) is an American businesswoman, political donor, politician, and former diplomat who served as the United States ambassador to the United Nations from 2019 to 2021. Craft previously served as the United ...

, and 24 other former Trump officials. Biden's National Security Council called the sanctions "unproductive and cynical." In his nomination hearing, Blinken endorsed Pompeo's report that China is committing a genocide against Uyghur Muslims, reaffirming Biden's campaign stance.

India

During the campaign Trump spoke favorably of Indian Prime Minister

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...

and expressed a desire for a closer alliance with India. He told a campaign rally of Indian-Americans that under his administration, relations with India would be "the best ever". Trump and Modi met at the White House in June 2017, reaffirming the strong partnership between the two nations, especially in defense, maritime security and counterterrorism. He cited the relations as one of the most important in this century as he made a grand visit in February 2020 right before the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic. The visit coincided with anti-Hindu riots in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

Japan

Trump and Abe at a press conference in Akasaka Palace

During the 2016 election campaign, Trump accused Japan of unfair trade practices, "taking our jobs", and of currency manipulation. He suggested Japan should pay the U.S. for its military presence in Japan, and at one point suggested that Japan should develop nuclear weapons to defend itself against North Korea. Japanese Prime Minister

Shinzō Abe Shinzo Abe ( ; ja, 安倍晋三, Hepburn: , ; 21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 20 ...

met with President-elect Trump at

Trump Tower Trump Tower is a 58-story, mixed-use skyscraper at 721–725 Fifth Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, between East 56th and 57th Streets. The building contains the headquarters for the Trump Organization, as well ...

shortly after his election – the first foreign leader to do so. He said Trump was "a leader in whom I can have confidence". However, after the meeting Trump continued to complain about Japan's currency and its auto industry. In January 2017, Trump formally renounced the

, in which Japan would have been a key player, but left open the option of bilateral trade negotiations. During a visit to Japan in January 2017, Defense Secretary Mattis reaffirmed that the U.S. was committed to the defense of Japan. Trump and Abe met at the White House in February 2017, followed by a Florida golf excursion. Trump promised to strengthen ties between the two nations and said the U.S. is committed to the security of Japan, saying that the alliance between the two countries is "the cornerstone of peace and stability in the Pacific region".

North Korea

During the campaign Trump said that he would be willing to meet North Korean supreme leader

, whom he described as a "maniac" who also deserves credit for being able to overcome his rivals in order to succeed his father. He indicated that he did not want to get involved in any conflict between North and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

, an attitude which resulted in an editorial in the North Korean state media that hailed him as a "wise politician" and a "far-sighted presidential candidate" who could be good for North Korea. In the wake of the

January 2016 North Korean nuclear test January is the first month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is also the first of seven months to have a length of 31 days. The first day of the month is known as New Year's Day. It is, on average, the coldest month of the ...

Trump advocated placing greater pressure on China to rein in its ally North Korea. During the campaign and the early months of his presidency, he said he hoped that China would help to rein in North Korea's nuclear ambitions and missile tests. Tensions increased in April 2017, when speaking before a visit from Chinese leader

, Trump said, "If China is not going to solve North Korea, we will." On April 8, 2017, the US Navy sent a strike group to the Western Pacific from Singapore, which led to the North Korean government warning of a possible war. However, the strike group headed south for scheduled training exercises with the

Australian navy The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is the principal naval force of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). The professional head of the RAN is Chief of Navy (CN) Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AM, RAN. CN is also jointly responsible to the Minister of ...

but would go to the Korean peninsula the following week. On April 16

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 50th ...

visited South Korea, viewed the Demilitarized Zone which separates North from South Korea, and similarly warned that the U.S. "era of strategic patience" toward North Korea's nuclear and missile programs is over. Two months later, on June 17, North Korea released American captive

. Secretary of State

said that the State Department had secured Warmbier's release at the direction of Trump, and they would seek the release of three other imprisoned Americans in North Korea. In July 2017 North Korea tested two long-range missiles, identified by Western observers as

intercontinental ballistic missile An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a ballistic missile with a range greater than , primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery (delivering one or more thermonuclear warheads). Conventional, chemical, and biological weapons c ...

s potentially capable of reaching

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

, and the

contiguous United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...

. In August Trump significantly escalated his rhetoric against North Korea, saying that further provocation against the U.S. will be met with "fire and fury like the world has never seen." In March 2018 a South Korean delegation to the White House gave Trump a message from Kim, suggesting a meeting between Kim and Trump. The South Koreans said Kim was willing to talk about his nuclear and missile programs. Trump immediately accepted the invitation to meet "at a place and time to be determined." On May 10 it was announced that the meeting would take place on June 12 in Singapore. As a gesture of good will, Kim freed three U.S. citizens being held in North Korean prisons. However, as the time neared, North Korean officials failed to meet with their American counterparts to plan the meeting. On May 24 Trump called off the meeting, citing what he perceived as "tremendous anger and open hostility" in North Korea's most recent statement. A few days later planning for the meeting was resumed. On June 12, 2018, after several rounds of preliminary staff-level meetings, Trump and Kim met at a hotel in Singapore. They talked one-on-one with only interpreters present, then had a working lunch along with staff and advisors. They signed a joint statement agreeing to new peaceful relations, security guarantees for North Korea, reaffirmation of North Korea's promise to work toward denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, recovery of soldiers' remains, and follow-up negotiations between high-level officials. At a follow-up press conference, Trump announced that the U.S. will stop holding joint military exercises with South Korea, calling them "provocative". Immediately after the summit, Trump declared, "there is no longer a Nuclear Threat from North Korea." Donald Trump went to North Korea

A January 2019 American intelligence community assessment found that North Korea was unlikely to relinquish its nuclear arsenal, directly contradicting a core tenet of Trump's stated foreign policy. In late February 2019, Trump met with Chairman Kim Jong-un at a

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topography, topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used ...

Hanoi Hanoi or Ha Noi ( or ; vi, Hà Nội ) is the capital and second-largest city of Vietnam. It covers an area of . It consists of 12 urban districts, one district-leveled town and 17 rural districts. Located within the Red River Delta, Hanoi is ...

for talks. On February 28, the White House announced that the summit was called off after negotiations with the North Koreans failed to reach an agreement. Following the

2019 G20 Osaka summit The 2019 G20 Osaka summit was the fourteenth meeting of the G20, a forum of 19 countries and the EU that together represent most of the world economy. It was held on 28–29 June 2019 at the International Exhibition Center in Osaka. It was ...

, Trump arranged for a meeting with Chairman Kim at the Korean Demilitarized Zone alongside South Korean President

Moon Jae-in Moon Jae-in (; ; born 24 January 1953) is a South Korean former politician, civil servant and lawyer who served as the 12th president of South Korea between 2017 and 2022. Prior to his presidency, he served as Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs an ...

. The one-day trilateral summit at the DMZ was held on June 30, in which Trump became the first U.S. president to set foot on North Korean soil while in office. Trump and Kim also pledged to jump-start negotiations over North Korea's nuclear program after talks collapsed during the February 2019 Hanoi summit. Subsequent October 2019 talks in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

quickly broke down in recriminations, with the DPRK accusing the United States of a "hostile policy." There were no further known talks between the nations during the Trump presidency. By 2020, North Korea's nuclear arsenal had reportedly increased to levels far larger than it was prior to the 2018 Singapore summit.

South Korea

Trump and Moon met at the White House in June 2017 to discuss trade relations and North Korean missile programs.

Pakistan

During the campaign, Trump said Pakistan is "the most dangerous country in the world" and should denuclearize. But according to the Pakistan government, in a cordial post-election telephone conversation with Pakistan's Prime Minister

Nawaz Sharif Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu, Punjabi language, Punjabi: ; born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms. He is the longest-serving prime ...

, Trump lavished praise on Pakistan and its "fantastic" people, said he would love to visit the country, and offered to help Pakistan solve any outstanding problems. After taking office, Trump indicated that Pakistan will be among the countries whose citizens will have to go through an " extreme vetting" process before entering the United States. On July 2, 2019,

designated

Baloch Liberation Army The Balochistan Liberation Army ( bal, بلۏچستان آجوییء لشکر; Abbreviation, abbreviated BLA), also known as the Baloch Liberation Army, is a Baloch people, Baloch ethnonationalist militant organization based in Afghanistan. The ...

(BLA), a separatist militant group that aims to separate

Balochistan Balochistan ( ; bal, بلۏچستان; also romanised as Baluchistan and Baluchestan) is a historical region in Western and South Asia, located in the Iranian plateau's far southeast and bordering the Indian Plate and the Arabian Sea coastline. ...

from Pakistan, as a terrorist organization.

Philippines

Donald Trump and Rodrigo Duterte in Manila

U.S.-Philippines relations had taken a turn for the worse with the election of Philippines President

Rodrigo Duterte Rodrigo Roa Duterte (, ; born March 28, 1945), also known as Digong, Rody, and by the initials DU30 and PRRD, is a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 16th president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. He is the chairperson ...

in June 2016. Duterte expressed strong hostility toward then-President Obama and threatened to sever the long-standing ties between the two countries due to the latter's criticism on the issue of human rights in Duterte's policy on the

War on Drugs The war on drugs is a Globalization, global campaign, led by the United States federal government, of prohibition of drugs, drug prohibition, military aid, and military intervention, with the aim of reducing the illegal drug trade in the Unite ...

. On December 2, 2016, President-elect Trump accepted a congratulatory call from Duterte. A statement from the Trump team said the two leaders "noted the long history of friendship and cooperation between the two nations, and agreed that the two governments would continue to work together closely on matters of shared interest and concern". Duterte claimed afterward that Trump had praised Duterte's controversial "war on drugs", which had killed thousands of people without trial, and that Trump said the Philippines are "doing it as a sovereign nation, the right way."

Europe

Eastern Mediterranean

In 2019, Greece and the United States signed a revised

defense pact A defense pact (or defence pact in Commonwealth spelling) is a type of treaty or military alliance in which the signatories promise to support each other militarily and to defend each other.Volker Krause, J. David Singer "Minor Powers, Allianc ...

, which American officials described as critical to responding to security challenges in the

Eastern Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean is a loose definition of the eastern approximate half, or third, of the Mediterranean Sea, often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It typically embraces all of that sea's coastal zones, referring to communi ...

Sea. The deal provides for increasing joint U.S.-Greece and NATO activity at

Larissa Larissa (; el, Λάρισα, , ) is the capital and largest city of the Thessaly region in Greece. It is the fifth-most populous city in Greece with a population of 144,651 according to the 2011 census. It is also capital of the Larissa regiona ...

Stefanovikio Stefanovikio ( el, Στεφανοβίκειο) is a small town in Thessaly, Greece. It is part of the Rigas Feraios municipality, and the municipal unit Karla. Location Stefanovikio is located in the prefecture of Magnesia, in the Rigas Fe ...

, and

Alexandroupoli Alexandroupolis ( el, Αλεξανδρούπολη, ), Alexandroupoli, or Alexandrople is a city in Greece and the capital of the Evros regional unit. It is the largest city in Western Thrace and the region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace. It h ...

as well as infrastructure and other improvements at the

Crete Naval Base Crete Naval Base ( el, Ναύσταθμος Κρήτης, ''Nafstathmos Kritis'') is a major naval base of the Hellenic Navy and NATO at Souda Bay in Crete, Greece. Formally known in NATO as Naval Support Activity, Souda Bay (NSA-Souda Bay), a ...

France

In their first telephone call, President Trump told French President

François Hollande François Gérard Georges Nicolas Hollande (; born 12 August 1954) is a French politician who served as President of France from 2012 to 2017. He previously was First Secretary of the Socialist Party (PS) from 1997 to 2008, Mayor of Tulle from ...

that he "loved France" and that there was "no more beautiful country than France". However, in his 2017 CPAC speech, Trump said, "France is no longer France" due to terrorism. In response, President Hollande said allies should not criticize each other, and he invited him to visit

Disneyland Paris Disneyland Paris is an entertainment resort in Chessy, France, east of Paris. It encompasses two theme parks, resort hotels, Disney Nature Resorts, a shopping, dining and entertainment complex, and a golf course. Disneyland Park is the origin ...

. In advance of the

2017 French presidential election The 2017 French presidential election was held on 23 April and 7 May 2017. As no candidate won a majority in the first round, a runoff was held between the top two candidates, Emmanuel Macron of En Marche! (EM) and Marine Le Pen of the Nationa ...

Trump was reported to have expressed support for

Marine Le Pen Marion Anne Perrine "Marine" Le Pen (; born 5 August 1968) is a French lawyer and politician who ran for the French presidency in 2012, 2017, and 2022. A member of the National Rally (RN; previously the National Front, FN), she served as its pre ...

, calling her the "strongest candidate", although he did not explicitly endorse her. However, when meeting with newly elected French president

Emmanuel Macron Emmanuel Macron (; born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has served as President of France since 2017. ''Ex officio'', he is also one of the two Co-Princes of Andorra. Prior to his presidency, Macron served as Minister of Econ ...

in Brussels in May 2017 he said to Macron "you were my guy", stating that media reports had been wrong. Trump honored the invitation of French president Emmanuel Macron to attend the annual Bastille Day Military Parade on July 14, 2017, in Paris.

Germany

American relations with Germany have worsened under President Donald Trump, especially regarding trade and NATO. During the campaign Trump was critical of German chancellor

Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Oppo ...

and her handling of the

European migrant crisis The 2015 European migrant crisis, also known internationally as the Syrian refugee crisis, was a period of significantly increased movement of refugees and migrants into Europe in 2015, when 1.3 million people came to the continent to reques ...

, saying "Everyone thought she was a really great leader and now she's turned out to be this catastrophic leader. And she'll be out if they don't have a revolution." In July 2016, German Foreign Minister

Frank-Walter Steinmeier Frank-Walter Steinmeier (; born 5 January 1956) is a German politician serving as President of Germany since 19 March 2017. He was previously Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2009 and again from 2013 to 2017, as well as Vice Chan ...

stated that he was concerned about what he sees as Trump's contradictory promises to "make America strong again" while simultaneously reducing involvement overseas. Steinmeier said that Trump's proposed policies "would be dangerous not only for the United States, but for Europe and the rest of the world as well". After becoming president, Trump met with Merkel at the White House on March 17, 2017. The meeting was described as "awkward"; Trump failed to shake hands with Merkel for a photo op, and he made a joke about wiretapping which fell flat. The two "politely disagreed on everything from immigration to free trade and the value of seeking multinational agreements." The next day Trump tweeted, "Germany owes vast sums of money to NATO & the United States must be paid more for the powerful, and very expensive, defense it provides to Germany!" He also tried to get Merkel to talk about bilateral trade issues, but she pointed out that EU members only negotiate as a unit. In May 2017, at a meeting with European leaders in Brussels, Trump denounced Germany concerning the trade deficit as "bad, very bad", adding "Look at the millions of cars they sell in the US. Terrible. We will stop this." He threatened to impose a 35% tax on German car imports. A few days later Merkel suggested that Germany and Europe can no longer fully rely on the United States; and saying "we Europeans must really take our destiny into our own hands", also hinting to the decision by the United Kingdom to leave the European Union. However she underlined the importance of friendly relations with the United States, the United Kingdom as well as Russia. In late July 2020, the Trump administration announced its intentions to disperse 12,000 American troops from Germany and move the headquarters of U.S. European Command (EUCOM) from Germany to

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

in a major repositioning of forces, reportedly because Germany was not spending enough on its defense budget. Of the U.S. troops stationed in Germany, 6,400 will also return to the United States. Another 5,400 will be moved to other locations in Europe that already house American troops but pay less of a percentage of its GDP than that of Germany.

Holy See

Donald Trump Pope Francis Melania Trump in 2017

On May 24, 2017,

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

met with Trump in

Vatican City Vatican City (), officially the Vatican City State ( it, Stato della Città del Vaticano; la, Status Civitatis Vaticanae),—' * german: Vatikanstadt, cf. '—' (in Austria: ') * pl, Miasto Watykańskie, cf. '—' * pt, Cidade do Vati ...

where they discussed the contributions of

Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

to the United States and to the world. Trump and the Pope discussed issues of mutual concern including how religious communities can combat human suffering in crisis regions, such as

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...

, and

ISIL An Islamic state is a state that has a form of government based on Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a translation of the Arabic term ...

-controlled territory. Trump and Pope Francis also discussed

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

and the radicalization of young people. The Vatican's secretary of state,

Pietro Parolin Pietro Parolin OMRI (, ; born 17 January 1955) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church. A cardinal since February 2014, he has served as the Vatican's Secretary of State since October 2013 and a member of the Council of Cardinal Advisers sin ...

, raised the issue of

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

in the meeting and encouraged Trump to remain in the

Hungary

The Trump administration's approach towards

Viktor Orbán Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between 20 ...

's "illiberal" right-wing

Fidesz Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance (; hu, Fidesz – Magyar Polgári Szövetség) is a right-wing populist and national-conservative political party in Hungary, led by Viktor Orbán. It was formed in 1988 under the name of Alliance of Young ...

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

had been supportive, but, according to ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', "ineffective" in advancing American interests.

Italy

Donald Trump with Giuseppe Conte at the Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu, in Charlevoix, Canada - 2018

Italy was the first

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

an country to be visited by Trump. He went to Italy in May 2017, during his first presidential trip outside the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

During his trip to Italy, Trump held a bilateral meeting with

; and met Italian President

Sergio Mattarella Sergio Mattarella (; born 23 July 1941) is an Italian politician, jurist, academic and lawyer who has served as the president of Italy since 2015. A Christian leftist politician, Mattarella was a leading member of the Christian Democracy par ...

and Prime Minister

Paolo Gentiloni Paolo Gentiloni Silveri (; born 22 November 1954) is an Italian politician who has served as European Commissioner for Economy in the von der Leyen Commission since 1 December 2019. He previously served as prime minister of Italy from December ...

. Gentiloni was also hosted by Trump at the

in April 2017, a few weeks before Trump took part in the 43rd G7 summit held in Italy. Trump often stated that Italy is a "key ally of America in

and the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

and a strategic partner in the

War on Terrorism The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant I ...

." In June 2018, Gentiloni was replaced by

Giuseppe Conte Giuseppe Conte (; born 8 August 1964) is an Italian jurist, academic, and politician who served as Prime Minister of Italy, prime minister of Italy from June 2018 to February 2021. He has been the president of the Five Star Movement (M5S) sin ...

, a populist politician, who built a close relationship with Trump. Since the beginning of Conte's government, Trump considered him a key ally during international meetings, and Conte offered to be a "privileged interlocutor" in Europe. On June 8 and 9, during

G7 summit The Group of Seven (G7) is an inter-governmental, intergovernmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States; additionally, the European Union (EU) is a "non-enumerated membe ...

, Conte was the only leader to back Trump and his proposal to readmit Russia into the G7. On the following day, Conte was thanked for his positions on Russia and his populist stance by Trump, who invited him to the

. On June 28, Conte participated in his first

European Council The European Council (informally EUCO) is a collegiate body that defines the overall political direction and priorities of the European Union. It is composed of the heads of state or government of the EU member states, the President of the E ...

meeting and blocked a joint EU trade and defense statement criticizing Trump's tariff policy. In June 2018, Trump praised Conte, describing him as a "really great leader" and "very strong on immigration". Trump also endorsed Conte during the 2019 government crisis, hoping that he could remain Prime Minister. On March 31, 2020, Trump announced that the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

would send 100 million dollars of medical aids to Italy, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic which was affecting the country. After few days, during an interview at the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

, Conte described Trump as "Italy's most true and loyal friend". On April 11, Trump issued an

executive order In the United States, an executive order is a directive by the president of the United States that manages operations of the federal government. The legal or constitutional basis for executive orders has multiple sources. Article Two of th ...

in which he allowed U.S. militaries deployed in Italy to assist Italian law enforcement in facing the crisis.

Kosovo–Serbia conflict

On October 4, 2019, Trump appointed

Richard Grenell Richard Allen Grenell (born September 18, 1966) is an American political operative, diplomat, TV personality, and public relations consultant who served as Acting Director of National Intelligence in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet in 2020. ...

as Special Presidential Envoy for Serbia and Kosovo Peace Negotiations. After months of diplomatic talks, facilitated by Grenell, on January 20, 2020, Serbia and Kosovo agreed to restore flights between their capitals for the first time in more than two decades. The Trump administration initiated diplomatic negotiations that resulted in the 2020 Kosovo and Serbia agreement on the normalisation of economic relations, which was signed by

Aleksandar Vučić Aleksandar Vučić ( sr-Cyrl, Александар Вучић, ; born 5 March 1970) is a Serbian politician serving as the president of Serbia since 2017, and as the president of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) since 2012. Vučić served ...

President of Serbia The president of Serbia ( sr, Председник Србије, Predsednik Srbije), officially styled as the President of the Republic ( sr, Председник Републике, Predsednik Republike) is the head of state of Serbia. The curr ...

, and

Avdullah Hoti Avdullah Hoti (born 4 February 1976) is a Kosovan politician, who served as the prime minister of Kosovo from 3 June 2020 until 22 March 2021. He previously served as the minister of Finance of Kosovo between 2014 and 2017 in the PDK/ LDK coali ...

Prime Minister of Kosovo The prime minister of the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Kryeministri i Republikës së Kosovës, sr, Премијер Републике Косова, Premijer Republike Kosova) is the head of government of Kosovo. The prime minister and the Gover ...

, at the White House, in the presence of Donald Trump on September 4, 2020. The deal will encompass freer transit, including by rail and road, while both parties agreed to work with the

Export–Import Bank of the United States The Export–Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) is the official export credit agency (ECA) of the United States federal government. Operating as a wholly owned federal government corporation, the bank "assists in financing and facilitating ...

and the

U.S. International Development Finance Corporation The United States International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) is a development finance institution and agency of the United States federal government. DFC invests in development projects primarily in lower and middle-income countries. Fi ...

and to join the Mini Schengen Zone, but the agreement also included the relocation of the Serbian embassy to Jerusalem, as well as, and mutual recognition between Israel and Kosovo.

Poland

During the Trump administration,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

and the United States continued to exhibit warm military, diplomatic, and economic bilateral relations. This was bolstered by the broadly shared

values between President Donald Trump and President of Poland

Andrzej Duda Andrzej Sebastian Duda (; born 16 May 1972) is a Polish lawyer and politician who has served as president of Poland since 6 August 2015. Before becoming president, Andrzej Duda was a member of Polish Lower House (Sejm) from 2011 to 2014 and the ...

, along with Poland's desire for strengthened military ties with the United States in order to counter

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n influence in Europe, particularly following the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea. In July 2017, in his second foreign trip, President Donald Trump visited Poland where he met with the President Andrzej Duda. He also said: "Our strong alliance with

and

remains critical to deterring conflict and ensuring that war between great powers never again ravages

, and that the world will be a safer and better place. America is committed to maintaining peace and security in

Central and Eastern Europe Central and Eastern Europe is a term encompassing the countries in the Baltics, Central Europe, Eastern Europe and Southeast Europe (mostly the Balkans), usually meaning former communist states from the Eastern Bloc and Warsaw Pact in Europe. ...

". Trump says the U.S. stands firmly behind NATO's Article 5, which says an attack against one member is attack against all. Trump described

as a long-time U.S. ally that is "an example for others who seek freedom and who wish to summon the courage and the will to defend our civilization." He also attended in the

Three Seas Initiative The Three Seas Initiative (3SI or TSI), known also as the Baltic, Adriatic, Black Sea (BABS) Initiative or simply as the Three Seas (Latin: ''Trimarium'', Polish: ''Trójmorze''), is a forum of twelve states, in the European Union, running along ...

summit 2017 in Warsaw.

Razem Left Together () is a left-wing political party in Poland. It was formed in 2015 as "Together", and it was one of the eight nationwide committees standing in the 2015 parliamentary election. It was a member of the Progressive International, a ...

, a Polish left-wing political party, organized a protest against Trump. Protesters were dressed as handmaids from

Margaret Atwood Margaret Eleanor Atwood (born November 18, 1939) is a Canadian poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist, teacher, environmental activist, and inventor. Since 1961, she has published 18 books of poetry, 18 novels, 11 books of non-fiction, nin ...

's dystopian novel ''

The Handmaid's Tale ''The Handmaid's Tale'' is a futuristic dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood and published in 1985. It is set in a near-future New England in a patriarchal, totalitarian theonomic state known as the Republic of Gilead, which h ...

'', as a symbol of

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

being endangered both in

and the

Spotkanie z wiceprezydentem USA Michaelem Pence'em (48664497543)

In June 2019, during a trip to the United States to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Poland's membership in NATO and the 30th anniversary of communism's downfall in the country, Duda visited the

where he and Trump signed a joint defense agreement to increase military cooperation. According to the agreement, which Trump called a "statement" on the relationship between the two countries, Poland will pay for an additional 1,000 U.S. troops to be stationed in Poland on a rotational basis. The force will be apportioned from the 52,000-strong contingent of U.S. forces in Germany and will include special operations troops, drones and other military hardware. In a separate deal, Poland ordered 32

fighter jets from the U.S. Trump celebrated the agreement with two F-35 jets conducting flybys over the White House in a rare U.S. military display. On that day, Polish state-owned natural gas company

PGNiG Polskie Górnictwo Naftowe i Gazownictwo S.A. ( en: Polish Oil Mining and Gas Extraction S.A.), abbreviated to PGNiG, is a Polish state-controlled oil and gas company, headquartered in Warsaw, Poland. The company has branches and representative ...

signed an agreement with U.S. company Venture Global LNG to buy 1.5 million metric tons of

liquefied natural gas Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4, with some mixture of ethane, C2H6) that has been cooled down to liquid form for ease and safety of non-pressurized storage or transport. It takes up about 1/600th the volu ...

per year as part of an initiative to seek alternative supplies of gas other than Russia's

Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the larges ...

. The deal is seen as part of the Trump administration's "energy dominance" economic policy, in which the U.S. slashes domestic regulations on energy production to boost oil and gas exports to allies and trade partners, such as Poland, serving as an alternative to Russian gas pipelines. On June 24, 2020, Trump said at a press conference with Polish President Duda that the United States plans to move some U.S. troops from Germany to Poland. Trump said that "Poland is one of the few countries that are fulfilling their obligations under

— in particular, their monetary obligations — and they asked us if we would send some additional troops."

Russia

During the campaign

Trump praised Russian President

repeatedly over a series of years. During the campaign his praise blossomed into what many observers termed a " bromance".Jeremy Diamond
Timeline: Donald Trump's praise for Vladimir Putin
CNN (July 29, 2016). In particular, Trump praised Putin as a "strong leader" and said that he expected to "get along very well" with Putin. Trump often described Putin as "a better leader" than Obama. Putin praised Trump as "a very bright and talented man, no doubt about that", and Trump claimed Putin called him a "genius", a mischaracterization based on an incorrect translation. When asked about allegations that Putin has killed journalists and political opponents, Trump brushed them off, implying that the United States has done the same thing. During the campaign, Trump hinted that he would consider recognizing Crimea as Russian territory and lifting the sanctions on Russia that were imposed after Russia began

military invention A military invention is an invention that was first created by a military. There are many inventions that were originally created by the military and subsequently found civilian uses. Military inventions with civilian uses See also * Allied ...

in an attempt to undermine the new, pro-Western

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

government.Max Fisher
Donald Trump's Appeal to Russia Shocks Foreign Policy Experts
''New York Times'' (July 28, 2016). He suggested that the "people of Crimea... would rather be with Russia". It had been suggested that these policies were influenced by advisors who were sympathetic to Russian influence in Ukraine, including

Paul Manafort Paul John Manafort Jr. (; born April 1, 1949) is an American lobbyist, political consultant, and attorney. A long-time Republican Party campaign consultant, he chaired the Trump presidential campaign from June to August 2016. Manafort served ...

Carter Page Carter William Page (born June 3, 1971) is an American petroleum industry consultant and a former foreign-policy adviser to Donald Trump during his 2016 presidential election campaign. Page is the founder and managing partner of Global Energy C ...

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (; ; born Heinz Alfred Kissinger, May 27, 1923) is a German-born American politician, diplomat, and geopolitical consultant who served as United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor under the presid ...

,Michael Crowley
Trump changed views on Ukraine after hiring Manafort
''Politico'' (August 3, 2016). and Michael T. Flynn. Manafort in particular was strongly connected to

Viktor Yanukovych Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych ( uk, Віктор Федорович Янукович, ; ; born 9 July 1950) is a former politician who served as the fourth president of Ukraine from 2010 until he was removed from office in the Revolution of Di ...

, the pro-Russian president of Ukraine who was deposed in the

2014 Ukrainian revolution The Revolution of Dignity ( uk, Революція гідності, translit=Revoliutsiia hidnosti) also known as the Maidan Revolution or the Ukrainian Revolution,

. Trump also said that Russia could help the United States in fighting the ISIS terror organization.

The Trump administration

In Trump's first 60-minute telephone call with Russian President Putin, Putin inquired about extending New START nuclear arms reduction treaty between the U.S. and Russia, negotiated by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

in 2010. Trump attacked the treaty, claiming that it favored Russia and was "one of several bad deals negotiated by the Obama administration". On February 6, 2017, talking to Bill O'Reilly on

Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...

, Trump questioned the veracity of O'Reilly's claim that ″within 24 hours of you on the phone with the Russian leader, the pro-Russian forces Battle of Avdiivka, step[ed] up the violence in Ukraine″. He said he ″respected″ Putin and dismissed O'Reilly's statement that Putin was a ″killer″, which prompted CNN to opine that Trump had "appeared to equate U.S. actions with the

regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin." As Trump's

, Michael T. Flynn was an important link in the connections between Putin and Trump in the "Ukraine peace plan", an unofficial plan "organized outside regular diplomatic channels....at the behest of top aides to President Putin". This plan, aimed at easing the International sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian War, sanctions imposed on Russia, progressed from Putin and his advisors to Ukrainian politician Andrii Artemenko, Andrey Artemenko, Felix Sater, Michael Cohen (lawyer), Michael Cohen, and Flynn, where he would have then presented it to Trump. ''The New York Times'' reported that Sater delivered the plan "in a sealed envelope" to Cohen, who then passed it on to Flynn in February 2017, just before his resignation. In February 2017, following his first meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, Secretary of State

said that the U.S. expected Russia to "honor its commitment to the Minsk Protocol, Minsk agreements and work to de-escalate the violence in Ukraine". On the same day Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, James Mattis, declared that the United States was not currently prepared to collaborate with Russia on military matters, including future anti-ISIL US operations. Michael Isikoff of Yahoo! News reported in June 2017 that during the early weeks of the Trump administration, State Department employees were told to develop proposals to lift the sanctions which had been imposed on Russia after its military incursions into Ukraine and its interference in the November election. No action or return would be expected from Russia in return for removing the sanctions. The proposals were dropped after resistance from State Department employees and a realization that such an action would look bad politically in light of the investigations into a Russia connection to the Trump campaign. A former State Department who retired in February said, "What was troubling about these stories is that suddenly I was hearing that we were preparing to rescind sanctions in exchange for, well, nothing." According to a poll conducted by the SSRS, approximately 70% of Americans find that the federal investigation into Russia's efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election in the US should be able to look into President Donald Trump's finances. 60% of those polled view this as a serious matter that should be fully investigated, and it was recorded that 38% view it as a way to discredit the Presidency of Donald Trump. In an approximate two-to-one margin, those polled disapprove of the way the President is dealing the Russian investigation. According to the book ''The Madman Theory'' by CNN anchor Jim Sciutto, Susan M. Gordon the former Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence stated that Trump downplayed Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential election and refused to devote the necessary resources to defend against it in the future. She went on to say that Trump had a "disproportionate affection for Russia." On August 2, 2017, Trump signed into law the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), which imposed new sanctions on Russia. As president, Trump continued to advocate for U.S.-Russia cooperation against the

terror organization. At his first direct meeting and encounter with Russian President Vladimir Putin, he approved a collaborative plan for a limited cease-fire in the Syrian civil war. Trump met with Putin at a 2018 Russia–United States summit, summit in Helsinki on July 16, 2018. The two leaders spoke one-on-one for two hours, with no aides or other people present except for two translators. There was no definite agenda, and no definite agreements were announced. After a joint press conference at the conclusion of the meeting, Trump drew harsh bipartisan criticism in the United States for appearing to side with Putin's denial of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, rather than accepting the findings of the United States Intelligence Community, United States intelligence community. Universally condemned by Democrats, his comments were also strongly criticized by many congressional Republicans and most media commentators, even those who normally support him. Amid continuing growth of People's Liberation Army Rocket Force, China's missile forces, Trump announced in October 2018 that he was withdrawing the U.S. from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty due to supposed Russian non-compliance, a move criticized by the former List of leaders of the Soviet Union, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who signed the treaty in 1987 with U.S. President

. On May 3, 2019, Trump held an hour and a half-long phone call with President Putin from the White House. The Embassy of Russia in Washington, D.C., Russian Embassy stated that the pair discussed "shared commitment to step up dialogue in various areas, including on issues of strategic stability." Trump called the conversation "positive" and tweeted there was "Tremendous potential for a good/great relationship with Russia," and later relayed to reporters Putin's assurances that Russia isn't seeking to "get involved" with the ongoing Venezuelan presidential crisis, 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis, despite Trump's national security advisors saying otherwise. They also discussed North Korean missile activity, with Putin briefing Trump on the Kim–Putin meetings, April 25 meetings with North Korean leader

. Trump and Putin agreed on the importance of North Korea and weapons of mass destruction, denuclearization and normalization of relations on the Korea, Korean peninsula. The Mueller report, Mueller Report, a report on the results of a domestic U.S. Mueller special counsel investigation, investigation into Links between Trump associates and Russian officials, Russian contacts between Trump's Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign, 2016 election campaign, was also discussed. World nuclear weapons

In June 2019, the ''New York Times'' reported that hackers from the United States Cyber Command planted malware potentially capable of disrupting the Electricity sector in Russia, Russian electrical grid. According to ''Wired (magazine), Wired'' senior writer Andy Greenberg, "The Kremlin warned that the intrusions could escalate into a cyberwar between the two countries." During the 45th G7 summit, 2019 G7 summit in France, Trump unilaterally advocated for Group of Eight, Russia's membership to G7 to be reinstated and said he intended to invite Vladimir Putin to the 46th G7 summit, 2020 G7 summit, set to be held in the U.S. Trump also shifted some blame for Russia's 2014 Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, Crimea annexation to his predecessor President

, saying Obama "was pure and simply outsmarted." "It could have been stopped...but President Obama was unable to stop it, and it's too bad," he added. Trump said the Nord Stream 2 List of countries by natural gas exports, gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, owned by Russia's

, could turn Germany into a "hostage of Russia". Businesses involved in the Nord Stream 2 have been sanctioned by the Trump administration with the passing of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 on December 20, 2019. In June 2020, the ''New York Times'' reported that Russian military intelligence had paid Russian bounty program, bounties to

-linked insurgents for killing U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. Trump, his Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe (American politician), John Ratcliffe, and National Security Adviser Robert C. O'Brien, Robert O'Brien said that Trump had not been briefed "because it was unverified intelligence", but it was later reported that Trump received a written briefing on possible Russian bounties in a February 2020 ''President's Daily Brief'', a document that Trump often does not read.Charlie Savage, Eric Schmitt, Nicholas Fandos & Adam Goldman
Trump Got Written Briefing in February on Possible Russian Bounties, Officials Say
''New York Times'' (June 29, 2020). In subsequent conservations with Putin, Trump never raised the reports of the bounty program, saying "that's an issue that many people said was fake news." Some White House officials were aware of the bounty reports by early 2019.James LaPorta
AP sources: White House aware of Russian bounties in 2019
Associated Press (June 29, 2020). The inclusion of the bounty reports in the ''President's Daily Brief'' and (in May 2020) in the CIA's classified ''World Intelligence Review'' intelligence compilation demonstrated that the reports, gleaned in part from information collected in raids and interrogations of captured Islamic terrorism, Islamist militants in the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021), War in Afghanistan, was seen as credible by U.S. intelligence officials. The National Security Agency (NSA), which focuses on electronic intelligence-gathering and had been skeptical of human sources, "strongly dissented" from the CIA and Defense Intelligence Agency assessments that the bounty plot is credible and real. After the National Security Council convened a meeting on the matter in late March 2020, the White House officials were presented with a number of options, including making a diplomatic protest and imposing sanctions, but Trump did not authorize any action. General Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., Kenneth McKenzie, the commander of United States Central Command, U.S. Central Command, said that he found no "causative link" between reported bounties to actual U.S. military deaths. United States Secretary of Defense, Defense Secretary Mark Esper and top military officials mostly played down reports of a bounty program; although the military's investigation remained open as of late December 2020. On July 1, 2020, following media reports of Taliban participation in an alleged Russian bounty program, the United States House Committee on Armed Services, House Armed Services Committee overwhelmingly voted in favor of an amendment to the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (2021 NDAA) to restrict Trump's ability to Withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan. In a provision of an omnibus appropriations bill enacted in December 2020, Congress pressed the military to further investigate the reports on "Russia's malign activities in Afghanistan" and provide a report to Congress.

Spain and Catalonia

President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy

Amid the 2017–2018 Spanish constitutional crisis, during Prime Minister of Spain, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's visit to the White House, Trump said on September 26, 2017, that the United States opposed the Catalan independence movement, saying that separation would be "foolish" and that "Spain is a great country, and it should remain united". On October 27 of the same year, the Parliament of Catalonia approved the Catalan declaration of independence, unilateral declaration of independence, the U.S. State Department stated: "Catalonia is an integral part of Spain, and the United States supports the Spanish government's constitutional measures to keep Spain strong and united".

Ukraine

Speaking to the Yalta European Strategy conference in September 2015, Trump criticized Germany and other List of sovereign states and dependent territories in Europe, European countries for not doing enough to support Ukraine in its Russian military intervention in Ukraine (2014–present), conflict with Russia, saying, Ukrainians are "not being treated right."Trump discusses Ukraine and Syria with European politicians via video link
''

'' (September 11, 2015) However early in the campaign Trump opposed U.S. involvement in the Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, Ukrainian crisis, describing Crimea as "Europe's problem;" in a rally in July 2016 he implied that such involvement could have led to World War III and criticized Germany and other European countries for not doing more to support Ukraine. Later in the campaign, however, he stated that he would consider Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, recognizing Crimea as Russian territory. In February 2017 Trump explained that Crimea was taken by Russia by force and asked whether Obama was too soft on Russia. In August 2015 Trump stated he had no opinion about Ukraine–NATO relations, Ukrainian membership in NATO, saying that both membership and non-membership would be "great."Trump tells Ukraine conference their nation was invaded because 'there is no respect for the United States'
''

'' (September 11, 2015) Since at least May 2019, Trump's personal attorney Rudy Giuliani had been pushing for Volodymyr Zelensky, the newly elected president of Ukraine, to investigate the oil company Burisma, whose board of directors includes Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden, Hunter, as well as to check if there were any irregularities in the Ukrainian investigation of

. He said such investigations would be beneficial to his client, Trump, and that his efforts had Trump's full support. Giuliani met with Ukrainian officials to press this case in June 2019 and August 2019. Meanwhile, the

put a hold on the distribution of $250 million worth of military aid to Ukraine which Congress had authorized. On September 11 the administration said it had released the money, even as Congress was contemplating bills to force its release. In September 2019, as reports surfaced of a whistleblower complaint against Trump that may have involved Ukraine, Giuliani conceded he had been pressing the Ukrainian government to investigate the Biden connection. In a later tweet he seemed to confirm reports that Trump had withheld the military assistance funds for Ukraine as a way of forcing them to carry out the investigations. He said, "The reality is that the President of the United States, whoever he is, has every right to tell the president of another country you better straighten out the corruption in your country if you want me to give you a lot of money. If you're so damn corrupt that you can't investigate allegations – our money is going to get squandered." Trump himself spoke to Zelensky by phone on July 25, 2019, and according to ''The Wall Street Journal'' he urged Zelensky "about eight times" to work with Giuliani and investigate Biden's son. On September 25, the administration released the White House's five-page, declassified memorandum of the July 25 phone call, which shows Trump repeatedly pressing Zelensky to work with Giuliani and U.S. Attorney General William Barr on investigations into the Family of Joe Biden, Biden family as well as the cybersecurity company CrowdStrike.

United Kingdom

During the campaign, Trump stated his support for Brexit, British voters voting to leave the European Union. In an interview with Piers Morgan in May 2016, Trump said that UK withdrawal would make no difference to a potential bilateral trade deal between the United Kingdom and the United States if he became president. On January 27, 2017, Trump met with Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, British Prime Minister Theresa May, the first foreign leader to visit him at the White House. In the meeting Trump reiterated his support for both countries' involvement in

. In March 2017, White House press secretary

repeated a false claim from

commentator Andrew Napolitano claiming that the British GCHQ had Trump Tower wiretapping allegations, wiretapped Trump Tower. This drew an angry response from the Government of the United Kingdom, British government, and eventually resulted in an apology from Spicer and the U.S. National Security Advisor

. In November 2017, Trump re-tweeted three Islamophobia, Islamophobic videos posted by Jayda Fransen, a leader of the Far-right politics in the United Kingdom, British far-right party Britain First. Theresa May's spokesperson condemned Trump, saying "The British people overwhelmingly reject the prejudiced rhetoric of the far-right, which is the antithesis of the values that this country represents — decency, tolerance and respect. It is wrong for the President to have done this." Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called Trump "abhorrent, dangerous and a threat to our country". In July 2018, Trump met with Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle. In June 2019, Trump made a state visit to the UK on behalf of invitation by Queen Elizabeth II. On July 7, weeks after Trump's state visit to the UK, leaked diplomatic cables revealed candid and unflattering assessments Ambassador of the United Kingdom to the United States, UK Ambassador Kim Darroch made regarding Trump and his administration since 2017, including calling Trump's presidency "diplomatically clumsy and inept" and stating that the president "radiates insecurity," along with suggesting that unproven claims of Trump and his son-in-law

being indebted "to shady Russian moneymen" could "not be ruled out". Trump subsequently tweeted that Darroch was "not liked or well thought of within the US" and that "we will no longer deal with him" and showed dismay at Prime Minister Theresa May's support of Darroch amidst the diplomatic row. On July 10, Darroch tendered his resignation, writing that "the current situation is making it impossible for me to carry out my role as I would like". A spokesman for the prime minister said that it was an ambassador's job to provide "an honest and unvarnished view" of the U.S. administration. Darroch did not leave his post until 2020. In July 2019, May was replaced by Boris Johnson.

Middle East

Egypt

During the campaign, Trump described the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, as a "fantastic guy," praising his handling of various political events in Egypt, such as June 2013 Egyptian protests, a massive uprising in late June 2013 in Egypt against former President Mohamed Morsi, which was followed by Morsi being 2013 Egyptian coup d'état, removed from office by el-Sisi on July 3, 2013. Trump said that there was a "good feeling between [them]". In April 2017, Trump welcomed el-Sisi to the White House, saying "We are very much behind President Sisi – he has done a fantastic job in a very difficult situation" and assuring el-Sisi that "you have a great ally in the US and in me." In contrast, Sisi was never invited to the White House during the Obama administration, which criticized post-Morsi authorities in Egypt, as well as Egypt's human rights record.

Iran

Withdrawal from nuclear agreement

During the campaign Trump maintained that "Iran is now the dominant Islamic power in the Middle East and on the road to nuclear weapons." He United States withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, opposed the

(JCPOA or "Iran nuclear deal") that was negotiated with P5+1, the United States, Iran, and five other world powers in 2015. Trump called the agreement "terrible" and saying that the Obama administration negotiated the agreement "from desperation."Donald Trump Weighs in on Iran Deal
(interview with Katy Tur), NBC News (July 14, 2015). At one point he said that despite opposing the content of the deal, he would attempt to enforce it rather than abrogate it. However, in a speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) in March 2016, Trump said that his "number-one priority is to dismantle the disastrous deal with Iran." The administration boasted that Trump personally lobbied dozens of European officials against doing business with Iran during the May 2017 Brussels summit; this likely violated the terms of the JCPOA, which expressly states that the U.S. may not pursue "any policy specifically intended to directly and adversely affect the normalization of trade and economic relations with Iran." The Trump administration certified in July 2017 that Iran had upheld its end of the agreement. On May 8, 2018, Trump announced the United States was withdrawing from the agreement, calling he agreement "a horrible one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made" and added, "it didn't bring calm, it didn't bring peace, and it never will." In November 2018, the Trump administration officially reinstated all sanctions against Iran that were previously lifted before the U.S. withdrew from the JCPOA. Contradicting the administration's previous statements, a January 2019 U.S. intelligence community assessment concluded that Iran was not pursuing nuclear weapons. In May 2019, the International Atomic Energy Agency certified that Iran was abiding by the main terms of the Iran nuclear deal, although questions were raised on how many advanced centrifuges Iran was allowed to have, as that was only loosely defined in the deal. In August 2020, after the United Nations Security Council rejected a U.S.-sponsored proposal to extend an arms embargo against Iran, Trump said that the U.S. would unilaterally "snapback" sanctions against Iran that had been lifted as part of the JCPOA—an argument based on the stance that the U.S. remained a "participant" in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal–despite Trump's withdrawal from it.Agencies
Donald Trump vows 'snapback' over humiliating UN defeat on Iran arms embargo
''The Guardian'' (August 15, 2020). The U.S. argument was met with skepticism by European allies. The Security Council voted on the Trump administration proposal later in August, with only the Dominican Republic joining the United States to vote in favor.

Intensified sanctions

The Trump White House announced that it was putting Iran "on notice" following its Iranian missile tests, ballistic missile tests on January 29, 2017, just days after taking office. Days later, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on 25 Iranian individuals and entities, calling these "initial steps". The Trump administration designated Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a United States Department of State list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations, terrorist organization in April 2019. Throughout 2019, the administration imposed sanctions on Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, other top officials and their associates, IRGC commanders, the Central Bank of Iran, and the Iranian industrial, construction, and other sectors. The U.S. sanctions caused economic damage to Iran, but did not cause the Economy of Iran, Iranian economy to collapse. The impact of new sanctions was also limited because many sanctioned entities had already been under U.S. sanctions. On May 20, 2019, amid a period of Iran–United States relations#2019 escalation in tensions, high tensions with Iran, Trump said: "We have no indication that anything's happened or will happen" in Iran. On May 24, Secretary of State

declared an "emergency" over Iran, allowing for the U.S. to sell around $8 billion worth of weapons to Saudi Arabia, without any congressional review, in the "national security interest of the United States". In August 2020, United States Intelligence Community, U.S. intelligence officials assessed that Iran offered bounties to the

-linked Haqqani network to kill foreign servicemembers, including Americans, in Afghanistan. U.S. intelligence determined that Iran paid bounties to Taliban insurgency, Taliban insurgents for the 2019 2019 Bagram Airfield attack, attack on Bagram airport. According to CNN, Donald Trump's administration "never mentioned Iran's connection to the bombing, an omission current and former officials said was connected to the broader prioritization of the peace agreement and withdrawal from Afghanistan." On August 6, 2020, the Trump administration fired the State Department's Special Representative to Iran Brian Hook. Jason Rezaian viewed it as a tacit admission that the so-called ''maximum pressure'' policy toward Iran had failed. They did this ahead of a U.S.-led U.N. Security Council vote ton whether to prolong an embargo on the sale of weapons to Iran set to expire in October. Rezaian said that Russia and China were almost certain to veto the extension allowing Iran to start buying arms again from whomever it likes.

Soleimani killing

In January 2020, Trump ordered the killing of Iranian Major General

, which was accomplished on January 3 in an Assassination of Qasem Soleimani, airstrike on Baghdad International Airport. Trump later announced Soleimani's death in a televised address, calling Soleimani "the number-one terrorist anywhere in the world" and saying that he was "plotting imminent and sinister attacks on American diplomats and military personnel." US Ambassador to the United Nations

wrote a letter to the UN Security Council in which she said that the act was one of self-defense. At the same time, she wrote in the letter that the US stood "ready to engage without preconditions in serious negotiations with Iran, with the goal of preventing further endangerment of international peace and security or escalation by the Iranian regime." Iran threatened retaliation, and Trump, in return, threatened to bomb 52 "very high level & important" sites in Iran (one for each American hostage taken in the 1979–81 Iran hostage crisis), including those of cultural importance, an act which many international legal experts have noted would constitute a war crime under the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict. That summer, Iran issued an Interpol notice, arrest warrant for 36 U.S. political and military officials, including Trump, for their role in the killing of Soleimani, though this effort was seen as symbolic.

Iraq, Syria, and the Islamic State

Iraq

During the 2016 campaign, Trump repeatedly advocated that the United States should "take the oil" from

as "Prize of war, spoils of war", a decision which would require another invasion and occupation of the country. Trump's statements caused criticism and controversy, as most legal experts agreed that the action would be an illegal war crime under the Geneva Conventions and because many believed that it would increase support for Islamic fundamentalism across the Middle East. Trump defended his statements by claiming that they would recoup the cost of U.S. military expenditure in Iraq and prevent Iraqi oil infrastructure from falling under

Oil production and smuggling in ISIL, control. Trump reiterated his support for seizing other nations' oil after taking office as president. In January 2017, he said that the United States "should have kept the oil" after the Iraq War, Iraq invasion and "maybe we'll have another chance". Axios (website), Axios reported in 2018 that, as president, Trump had twice brought the issue up with Prime Minister of Iraq, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, causing consternation among Trump's advisers. National Security Advisor (United States), National Security Adviser H. R. McMaster, H.R. McMaster is reported to have told Trump "We can't do this and you shouldn't talk about it. Because talking about it is just bad ... It's bad for America's reputation, it'll spook allies, it scares everybody," while United States Secretary of Defense, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis publicly stated that the United States did not intend "to seize anybody's oil." In January 2017, Trump issued an Executive Order 13769, executive order banning the entry of all Iraqi citizens, as well as citizens of six other countries. After sharp criticism, public protests, and lawsuits against the executive order, Trump relaxed the travel restrictions somewhat and dropped Iraq from the list of non-entry countries in March 2017.

Syria

In July 2017, on the advice of then-Central Intelligence Agency, CIA Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, director

, Trump ordered a "phasing out" of the Timber Sycamore, CIA's support for anti-Assad Syrian rebels during the Syrian civil war, Syrian Civil War. On October 9, 2019, Turkey 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, launched an offensive into northern Syria against the Kurds, Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (Rojava) after Trump shifted his personal support from the Kurds in Syria, Syrian Kurds to Turkey. In November 2019, Trump approved a mission for U.S. troops to secure the oil fields in eastern Syria. Later that month, Trump said that the remaining American troops in Syria were there "only for the oil", and that the U.S. was "keeping the oil". Seizing oil without local government permission would be a war crime of Looting, pillage, but the U.S. military confirmed it was coordinating with Rojava and the Syrian Democratic Forces that controlled the area.

= Responses to chemical weapons in Syria

= On April 7, 2017, Trump ordered the United States Navy to 2017 Shayrat missile strike, launch cruise missiles at Shayrat Air Base in response to the Khan Shaykhun chemical attack. The missile attack had wide international support and was highly praised by the majority of Republicans as well as Democratic senators. The move drew criticism from Russia, whom the United States had warned in advance about the attack. Although Russian anti-missile defenses such as S-300 missile system, S-300's failed to deter the missile attack, Russian forces suffered minimal damage, as the United States had deliberately avoided striking areas of the base used by Russia. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev criticized the strike as "good news for terrorists". Trump later addressed the nation from Mar-a-Lago in Florida on the strikes on Syria in April 2017, where he stated "I ordered a targeted military strike on the airfield in Syria from where the chemical attack was launched. It is in this vital national security interest of the United States to prevent and deter the spread and use of deadly chemical weapons. There can be no dispute that Syria used banned Syria chemical weapons program, chemical weapons, violated its obligations under the

and ignored the urging of the U.N. Security Council. Years of previous attempts at changing Assad's behavior have all failed and failed very dramatically. As a result the refugee crisis continues to deepen and the region continues to destabilize, threatening the United States and its allies. Tonight I call on all civilized nations to join us in seeking to end the slaughter and bloodshed in Syria and also to end terrorism of all kinds and all types". According to investigative journalist Bob Woodward, Trump had ordered his defense secretary Jim Mattis, James Mattis to assassinate Syrian president

after the chemical attack in April 2017, but Mattis declined; Trump denied doing so. In response to the Douma chemical attack in Syria, in April 2018, Trump ordered 2018 missile strikes against Syria, missile strikes against the Assad regime targeting alleged chemical weapons compounds; the U.S. led strikes were carried out along with the United Kingdom and France. Trump addressed the nation from the White House on April 13, 2018, of the strikes against Assad's chemical weapon compounds in Syria, stating "I ordered the United States Armed Forces to launch precision strikes on targets associated with the chemical weapons capabilities of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. A combined operation with the armed forces of France and the United Kingdom is now underway. We thank them both." "the Assad regime again deployed chemical weapons to slaughter innocent civilians this time, in the town of Douma, near the Syrian capital of Damascus. This massacre was a significant escalation in a pattern of chemical weapons use by that very terrible regime". Announcing troop withdrawal from Syria in December 2018, Trump stated on Twitter that defeating ISIL was "my only reason" for a military presence in Syria, seemingly disregarding the previous missions to respond to Assad's use of chemical weapons.

Responses to the Islamic State

=During the campaign

= During the presidential campaign in 2015, Trump frequently changed his positions on how to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). In June 2015, when asked how he would deal with Iraq's condemnation of strikes on their oil fields, Trump replied that Iraq is a corrupt country that is not deserving of his respect and that he would "bomb the hell" out of Oil reserves in Iraq, Iraqi oil fields controlled by ISIL. After formally announcing his candidacy on June 16, 2015, Trump's first interview was with Bill O'Reilly on ''The O'Reilly Factor'' the following day. He suggested a hands-off approach to the Syrian civil war, Syrian Civil War: "Iran and Russia are protecting Syria and it's sort of amazing that we're in there fighting ISIS in Syria so we're helping the head of Syria

who is not supposed to be our friend although he looks a lot better than some of our so-called friends." Instead of fighting ISIL in Syria, Trump suggested "maybe Syria should be a free zone for ISIS, let them fight and then you pick up the remnants." In a Republican primary debate on November 10, 2015, Trump said he "got to know

very well because we were both on '60 Minutes', we were stable mates, we did well that night." Trump said he approved of the Russian military intervention in the Syrian civil war, Russian military intervention in Syria, stating: "If Putin wants to knock the hell out of ISIS, I'm all for it 100 percent and I can't understand how anybody would be against that ... He's going in and we can go in and everybody should go in." During his speech at the Oklahoma State Fair, Trump accused his opponents of wanting to "start World War III over

." In the aftermath of the

committed by ISIL, Trump reiterated his position on ISIL, as he had stated the day before the attack that he would "bomb the shit out of 'em" and that he would "blow up the [oil] pipes, I'd blow up the refineries, and you know what, you'll get ExxonMobil, Exxon to come in there in two months... and I'd take the oil." Trump said that, to combat ISIL, "I would find you a proper general. I would find a George S. Patton, Patton or a Douglas MacArthur, MacArthur. I would hit them so hard your head would spin." Trump said in an interview with Anderson Cooper the day of the Paris attacks: "There is no Iraq. Their leaders are corrupt." In the March 11, 2016, CNN Republican presidential debate, he said he would send ground troops to fight ISIL, saying: "We really have no choice. We have to knock out ISIS." In a 2015 interview, Trump stated "You have to take out their families, when you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families. ... When they say they don't care about their lives, you have to take out their families." When pressed on what "take out" meant, Trump said the U.S. should "wipe out their homes" and "where they came from." Critics noted that the intentional targeting of non-combatants is a violation of the Geneva Conventions and other aspects of the international law of war. Jonathan Russell, head of policy for the anti-radicalization think tank Quilliam (think tank), Quilliam, warned that Trump's "anti-Muslim rhetoric" helps ISIL's "narrative", saying "Trump will contribute to Islamism, Islamist radicalization as his comments will make Muslims feel unwelcome in America." During his presidential campaign, Trump repeatedly criticized the Battle of Mosul (2016–17), battle to liberate Mosul from ISIL control, saying that the United States is "not going to benefit" from dislodging ISIL from the Iraqi city. Trump repeatedly asserted that U.S. and Iraqi military leaders should have used "the element of surprise" to attack Mosul rather than announcing plans beforehand. He also said that U.S. military planners were "a group of losers" for not doing so.Jeremy Diamond
Trump continues to knock Mosul offensive, calls leaders 'group of losers'
CNN (November 7, 2016). Some U.S. military officials openly rebuked Trump's comments, saying that "it is nearly impossible to move tens of thousands of troops into position without alerting the enemy" and asserting that it was vital to warn civilians of impending military action.

=After inauguration

2017

With the arrival of the Trump administration, a change in policy was instituted regarding the disclosure of troop levels abroad as well as the timing of any additional deployments to the Middle East, following through on his campaign promises to utilize the "element of surprise." By April 2017, there had been two non-disclosed troop deployments in the month of March: a deployment of 400 U.S. Marines to Raqqa campaign (2016–2017), northern Syria and 300 U.S. Army paratroopers to the area around Mosul, Mosul, Iraq. By April 2, 2017, the U.S. troop level, or "force management level" — the number of full-time troops deployed, was around 5,200 in Iraq and 500 in Syria, with about 1,000 more troops there on a temporary basis. The Syria deployment put more conventional U.S. troops on a front that, until then, had primarily used United States special operations forces, special operations units. The 400 Marines were part of the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, 11th MEU from the Battalion Landing Team 1st Battalion, 4th Marines. They manned an artillery battery whilst additional infantrymen from the unit provided security and resupplies were handled by part of the expeditionary force's combat logistics element. In August 2017, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL Brett McGurk, Brett H. McGurk stated that the Trump administration had "dramatically accelerated" the U.S.–led campaign against ISIL, citing estimates that almost one-third of the territory taken from ISIL "has been won in the last six months." McGurk favorably cited "steps President Trump has taken, including delegating decision–making authority from the White House to commanders in the field." Some right-wing populist media figures who supported Trump during the election criticized his apparent policy reversal on the Middle East after the increased anti-ISIL commitment. Ann Coulter stated that Trump "campaigned on not getting involved in Mideast" arguing that it was one of the reasons many voted for him.

2018

On December 11, 2018, anti-ISIL envoy Brett McGurk indicated in a press briefing that the war against ISIL in Syria was not over, stating, "It would be reckless if we were just to say, well, the physical caliphate is defeated, so we can just leave now." On December 17, 2018, James Franklin Jeffrey, James Jeffrey, the United States Special Representative for Syria Engagement, stated in an address to the Atlantic Council that the United States would remain in Syria "a very long time." On December 19, Trump, declaring "we have won against ISIS," unilaterally announced a "total" withdrawal of the 2,000–2,500 U.S. troops in Syria. The announcement was made on Twitter and the decision was apparently made without prior consultation with Congress, military commanders, civilian advisors, or allies. Although no timetable was provided at the time, press secretary Sarah Sanders indicated that the withdrawal had been ordered to begin. The Pentagon and State Department tried to change Trump's mind on the decision, with several of his congressional and political allies expressing concerns about the sudden move, specifically that it would "hand control of the region" to Russia and Iran, and "abandon" America's Kurdish allies. Brian Kilmeade of the Fox & Friends news program, which Trump himself often watches, sharply criticized Trump's decision as "totally irresponsible," adding "nobody thinks ISIS is defeated" and that the president had "blindsided" the Pentagon and State Department. Immediately after Trump's announcement, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis unsuccessfully tried persuading Trump to reconsider, then informed the president on December 20 he would resign from his post. Mattis asked to continue in his position through February to continue defending "the Department's interests" at Congressional and NATO meetings while Trump selected a successor. Two days later, McGurk announced he was also exiting as a consequence of Trump's decision. (McGurk had previously said he would leave in February, but as the result of the Syria withdrawal and Mattis' departure, he moved his own departure earlier to December 31.) In response, Trump wrote that he did not know McGurk and questioned if McGurk was a "grandstander". On December 23, Trump announced on Twitter that Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick M. Shanahan, Patrick Shanahan would become Acting Secretary of Defense effective January 1, thereby replacing Mattis two months' earlier than Mattis' requested resignation date. On December 30, Senator Lindsey Graham, a known Congressional confidant of the president, said that the decision was "a stain on the honor of the United States," and that while he agrees that it's possible to reduce the American footprint in Afghanistan, Syria, and Iraq, the US must keep troops in Syria to ensure ISIL can't regroup. Graham also said that he and a group of generals would urge Trump to reconsider his withdrawal plans during a luncheon later that day.

2019

One week after this announcement, Trump asserted he would not approve any extension of the American deployment in Syria. On January 6, 2019, national security advisor

added conditions to the pullout, announcing America would remain in Syria until ISIL is eradicated and until Turkey guarantees it would not strike America's Kurdish allies. On February 22, 2019, the administration stated that instead of the initially announced "total" pullout, 400 U.S. troops would remain in Syria indefinitely to serve as a Contingency plan, contingency force. About 200 of those would be a part of a larger multinational "observer force". Press secretary Sarah Sanders initially characterized the troops as "Peacekeeping, peacekeepers", although a senior administration official later disputed that label as the term technically implied restricted rules of engagement. The shift from a total to a partial withdrawal came after Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford strongly vouched for it as French and British allies declined to remain in Syria unless America did. After the announcement, ''The New York Times'' quoted officials as describing a "surreal atmosphere" at the Pentagon among military leaders overseeing Syrian policy. A bipartisan group of members of Congress wrote Trump a letter on February 22 endorsing a "small American stabilizing force" in Syria. Trump responded by writing directly on the letter, "I agree 100%. ALL is being done." On February 28, while speaking to troops at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in

during a refueling stop from 2019 North Korea–United States Hanoi Summit, Hanoi, Trump asserted that the Islamic State had lost "100 percent" of its territory that it once controlled in Syria. The assertion was false, as the Battle of Baghuz Fawqani was still ongoing, and the Islamic State still held territory in the Syrian Desert as well as the town of Al-Baghuz Fawqani. On March 22, 2019, in response to developments in the Battle of Baghuz Fawqani, where ISIL was still putting up stubborn resistance to the SDF, Trump showed reporters two maps comparing the extents of the Islamic State's occupation of Syria and Iraq, stating "Here's ISIS on Election Day. Here's ISIS right now." The "election day" map was actually from 2014, when the Islamic State was at its greatest territorial extent, and just as the U.S.-led coalition had begun pushing back against ISIL. The battle concluded on March 23, the next day, with the SDF militia's victory over ISIL. Trump administration officials and allies cautiously hailed the territorial collapse of the Islamic State in Syria while stressing the need to keep a presence in the country to keep up pressure and to stop a territorial resurgence of the Islamic State. From 2011, a reward of $10 million was offered for

, the leader of the Islamic State, by the United States Department of State, US State Department, increasing to $25 million in 2017, for Informant, information or Military intelligence#The intelligence process, intelligence on his whereabouts to enable capture, dead or alive. On October 27, 2019, he killed himself and two children by detonating a Explosive belt, suicide vest during the Death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Barisha raid conducted by the US Delta Force in Syria's northwestern Idlib Governorate, Idlib Province. Trump later announced the death, stating that al-Baghdadi "died after running into a dead-end tunnel, whimpering and crying and screaming all the way", despite only having seen drone footage without audio.

Syrian Kurdistan

In October 2019, Trump ordered the Pentagon to withdraw U.S. troops from northeastern Syria to allow Turkey to conduct a 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, planned military operation against Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, which had been supporting the U.S. against ISIL American-led intervention in the Syrian civil war, since 2014. The sudden announcement on the night of October 6 came after a Trump telephone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. U.S. troops reportedly began withdrawing from some positions in northern Syria on October 7. Similar to their reaction to Trump's initial December 2018 withdrawal announcement, Pentagon officials claimed they were "completely blindsided" by the order and drew concerns about the apparent sudden reneging of the U.S.'s alliance with the Kurds in Syria, Syrian Kurds. The withdrawal was harshly criticized by Congress members of both parties, including Republicans who usually defend Trump. Senator Lindsey Graham called the decision "shortsighted and irresponsible" and threatened to introduce a Senate resolution opposing the pullout. Senator

said "A precipitous withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria would only benefit Russia, Iran, and the Assad regime." Trump defended his withdrawal order, stating that the Kurdish–Turkish conflict (1978–present), Kurdish-Turkish conflict "has nothing to do with us" and described the situation as "strategically brilliant" for the U.S. According to Jim Sciutto's book ''The Madman Theory'', the former Deputy Secretary of Defense for the Middle East Michael Patrick Mulroy, Mick Mulroy said that the decision ran contrary to one of the main tenants of the National Defense Strategy (United States), National Defense Strategy of building and maintaining partners, that the People's Protection Units, YPG elements of the SDF were only ones capable of providing the combat leadership needed to defeat ISIL, and that the Commander of the SDF, General Mazloum Abdi, sent a letter to U.S. service members essentially absolving them of the decision of Trump, as he knew they would never have abandoned them. Trump expounded on his opinion of the Kurds while defending his decision to withdraw American troops, arguing that the U.S.'s commitment to them is overblown and stating that they "didn't help us in the World War II, Second World War, they didn't help us with Operation Overlord, Normandy as an example". Trump continued that "Alliances are very easy. But our alliances have taken advantage of us" and decried the Kurds as "no angels". According to media Fact-checking, fact checking, Trump made false or misleading statements while defending his decision-making, such as suggesting that the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)—which Turkey, the European Union, EU, the United Kingdom, UK, Canada and Kurdistan Workers' Party#Designation as a terrorist group, other nations designate as a terrorist group—"is probably worse at terror and more of a terrorist threat in many ways than ISIS". According to ''The New York Times'', in 2018, ISIL conducted more than six times more attacks and more than 15 times more killings than the PKK, while the PKK's recorded attacks throughout its history are less than half of ISIL's, despite the PKK having existed for six times longer. Amidst the U.S. withdrawal, he observed that the Kurds "are much safer right now", although Turkey had stated it had killed 150 Kurdish fighters by October 16, while the Kurds stated that almost 200,000 of their people had been displaced by the offensive at that point. Trump also falsely accused the Kurds of having deliberately released ISIL militants from prisons. On October 13, Trump ordered that the remaining ~1,000 U.S. troops in northern Syria also be withdrawn, but the Al-Tanf (U.S. military base), al-Tanf base in southeastern Syria would remain garrisoned. By November 2019, it had been announced that U.S. troops would remain in eastern Syria to work alongside the Syrian Democratic Forces in securing oil and gas fields against ISIL attacks. Trump approved and supported the mission, lauding that the U.S. "has secured the Oil, & the ISIS Fighters are double secured by Kurds & Turkey."

Israel and Israeli–Palestinian conflict

During the campaign

Trump was critical of the Obama administration's treatment of Israel, stating that "Israel has been totally mistreated." In December 2015, Trump said that he would not take sides in any Israeli-Palestinian agreement in order to be a neutral negotiator in the peace talks, although he also added that he was "totally pro-Israel." In December 2015, Trump told the Associated Press that an Israeli-Palestinian peace accord would depend very much upon Israel, remarking: "I have a real question as to whether or not both sides want to" come to a peace accord. "A lot will have to do with Israel and whether or not Israel wants to make the deal — whether or not Israel's willing to sacrifice certain things." In March 2016, Trump criticized the Palestinian National Authority for the absence of peace, saying: "the Palestinian Authority has to recognize Legitimacy of the State of Israel, Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state. …[and they] have to stop the terror, stop the attacks, stop the teaching of hatred...they have to stop the teaching of children to aspire to grow up as terrorists, which is a real problem. Of course, the recognition of Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state is also a major sticking point, with the current Palestinian leadership repeatedly refusing to meet that basic condition." In a speech to American Israel Public Affairs Committee, AIPAC, Trump vowed that as president he will veto a United Nations-imposed Israel-Palestine peace agreement, stating: "When I'm president, believe me, I will veto any attempt by the U.N. to impose its will on the Jewish state. It will be vetoed 100 percent."Read Donald Trump's Speech to AIPAC
Sarah Begley, Updated: March 21, 2016 He added that "The Palestinians must come to the table knowing that the bond between the United States and Israel is absolutely, totally unbreakable." Early in the campaign Trump refused to say whether he supported Israel's position that Jerusalem is its undivided capital. But he later said on multiple occasions that if elected president he would move the Tel Aviv Branch Office of the Embassy of the United States, U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to

, which he described as the "Status of Jerusalem, eternal capital of the Jewish people."Sarah Begley
Read Donald Trump's Speech to AIPAC
''Time'' (March 21, 2016). He repeated this pledge after a meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu in September 2016 During the campaign he broke with long-standing bipartisan U.S. policy that Israel should stop building additional Israeli settlements in the West Bank as a precursor to negotiations with the Palestinians, saying that the Israelis "have to keep going" and "I don't think there should be a pause."Orly Azoulay
Trump: Israel should 'keep going' with settlements expansions
Ynetnews (May 4, 2016).

2017–2021 Administration

In February 2017, Trump said that he could live with either a two-state solution or a one-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. This represented a break with the previous bipartisan foreign policy consensus of support for the two-state solution. On May 22, 2017, Trump was the first U.S. president to visit the Western Wall in

, during his first foreign trip, visiting Saudi Arabia, Israel, Italy, the Vatican City, Vatican, and

. On December 6, 2017, Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, despite objections from Palestinian leaders. Trump added that he would initiate the process of establishing a new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, fulfilling the Jerusalem Embassy Act, which had been passed by a bipartisan congressional supermajority in 1995. The Embassy of the United States, Jerusalem, United States Embassy officially relocated to Jerusalem on May 14, 2018, to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the Israeli Declaration of Independence.

= Israeli–Arab normalization agreements

= On August 13, 2020, the Israel–United Arab Emirates normalization agreement was finalized between Israel and the

(UAE).

, the primary official negotiating the agreement, stated that the deal would make the Middle East more peaceful and hopeful, which would mean fewer American troops would need to be deployed in the region. Secretary of State

said the deal was an important step toward stabilizing the region and was good for the whole world. A joint statement issued by Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, read: "This historic diplomatic breakthrough will advance peace in the Middle East region and is a testament to the bold diplomacy and vision of the three leaders and the courage of the United Arab Emirates and Israel to chart a new path that will unlock the great potential in the region." The UAE and Israel moved to establish full diplomatic ties after Israel agreed to suspend a Proposed Israeli annexation of the West Bank, plan to annex parts of the occupied Palestinian territories in the West Bank. The UAE said it would continue to support the Palestinian people and that the agreement would maintain the prospect of a two-state solution between Israel and State of Palestine, Palestine. Subsequently, the term "Abraham Accords" was used to refer collectively to agreements between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and

, respectively (the Bahrain–Israel normalization agreement). These two agreements, along with the Israel–Sudan normalization agreement and Israel–Morocco normalization agreement, have been described as one of Trump's most significant foreign policy accomplishments.

Libya

The Trump administration continued the Obama administration's American intervention in Libya (2015–2019), counter-Islamic State operations in Libya.

Morocco

On December 10, 2020, President Trump announced that the United States would officially recognize

's Political status of Western Sahara, claims over the Territorial dispute, disputed territory of

, as a result of Morocco agreeing to Israel–Morocco normalization agreement, normalize relations with Israel. Morocco had Annexation, annexed the territory in 1975.

Qatar

The Trump administration aimed to support efforts in fighting against states and groups allied with Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood. However, Trump claimed credit for engineering the Qatar diplomatic crisis in a series of tweets. Later on, Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani visited the United States in 2019, when an expansion of Al Udeid Air Base was announced to be funded by Qatar, which would cost $1.8 billion.

Saudi Arabia

Donald Trump and King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud sign a Joint Strategic Vision Statement, May 2017

During the campaign, Trump called for Saudi Arabia to pay for the costs of American troops stationed there. He argued that regional allies of the United States, such as Saudi Arabia should provide troops in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Trump said he would halt List of countries by oil exports, oil imports from Saudi Arabia unless the Saudi government provide ground troops to defeat ISIL. In March 2017, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson approved the resumption on the sale of Precision-guided munition, guided munitions to Saudi Arabia, a move that had been halted late in the Obama administration because of criticisms of the Saudi government's approach to civilian casualties in the Yemeni Civil War (2014–present), Yemeni Civil War.

Turkey

President Trump and President Erdoğan joint statement in the Roosevelt Room, May 16, 2017

During the campaign, Trump praised Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for his handling of the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt, 2016 coup attempt in Turkey. When asked if Erdoğan was exploiting the coup attempt to 2016 Turkish purges, purge his political enemies, Trump did not call for the Turkish leader to observe the rule of law, or offer other cautions for restraint. He said that the United States had to "fix our own mess" before trying to change the behavior of other countries. Trump also stated during the campaign that he believed he could persuade Erdoğan to step up efforts against ISIL. When asked how he would solve the problem of Kurdish–Turkish conflict (2015–present), Turkish attacks on Kurds who are fighting ISIL, Trump said "Meetings." Trump threatened Turkey with economic sanctions over its detention of the Evangelicalism, evangelical Christian pastor Andrew Brunson. On August 1, 2018, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on Turkey's justice and interior ministers. In October 2019, Trump ordered the Pentagon to withdraw U.S. troops from Northern Syria to allow Turkey to 2019 Turkish offensive into north-eastern Syria, extend the Turkish occupation of northern Syria, even though the Kurdish fighters the Turks attacked had helped the U.S. against the Islamic State. Pentagon officials stated that they were "completely blindsided" and "shocked" by the order.

Yemen

The Trump administration continued the List of drone strikes in Yemen, United States drone strikes in Yemen against the Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Al-Qaeda affiliate in Yemen, that were previously begun and expanded in the previous administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama. On February 1, 2020, Trump appeared to confirm reports that the U.S. had killed Qasim al-Raymi, the leader of an al Qaeda affiliate in Yemen by retweeting reports claiming that the CIA had conducted a drone strike targeting the Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula leader.

Oceania

Australia

A report in ''The Washington Post'' on February 2, 2017, claimed that Trump berated Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and hung up 35 minutes earlier than planned over a refugee resettlement deal that President Obama had made with Australia where the United States agreed to take 1,250 refugees from camps in Nauru and Manus Island. It was also claimed that Trump suggested Turnbull was attempting to export the next Boston Marathon bombing, Boston bombers to the United States. Later that same day, Trump explained that although he respected Australia, they were "terribly taking advantage" of the United States. Australian Ambassador Joe Hockey met with Reince Priebus and Steve Bannon, Stephen Bannon the next day, and Sean Spicer described the call as "cordial". Reuters described the call as "acrimonious", and ''The Washington Post'' said that it was Trump's "worst call by far" with a foreign leader. Notwithstanding the disagreement regarding the resettlement of the refugees Vice President

, while on a visit to Australia in April 2017, stated the United States will abide by the deal. The decision was seen as a positive sign of commitment by the Australian Prime Minister.

Sub-Saharan Africa

President Donald Trump shakes hands with Rwandan President Paul Kagame

The Trump administration was accused of generally "ignoring" Africa, particularly Sub-Saharan Africa. By October 2017, senior diplomatic positions relating to the continent were still vacant, including Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs and Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Africa. U.S. military operations in the region continued, but there were no clear statement of objectives or guidance for the United States Africa Command at the time, headed by General Thomas D. Waldhauser, Thomas Waldhauser. Alan Patterson would later serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Africa from December 2017 to October 2018 and Tibor P. Nagy would become Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs on July 23, 2018. During a summer 2017 meeting about immigration, Trump reportedly said that Nigerians, once they came to the United States, would never "go back to their huts". The White House strongly denied the claim. In a meeting with congressional leaders on January 11, 2018, Trump asked during a discussion of immigration from Africa why America would want people from "all these shithole countries", suggesting that it would be better to receive immigrants from countries like Norway. The comment was condemned as racist by many foreign leaders and a UN spokesman. The African Union said it was "alarmed" by the comment, which "flies in the face of all accepted behavior and practice." African ambassadors in Washington planned to meet the following week to discuss a response. They expressed dismay that it took something like this to bring attention to Africa when the continent had so many other issues, such as famine and civil war, that Washington ignored.

Ethiopia

In September 2020, the United States suspended part of its economic assistance to Ethiopia due to the lack of sufficient progress in negotiations with

and Egypt over the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. On October 24, 2020, President Donald Trump stated on a public phone call to Sudan's Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu that "it's a very dangerous situation because Egypt is not going to be able to live that way... And I said it and I say it loud and clear - they'll blow up that dam. And they have to do something." Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed responded that "Ethiopia will not cave in to aggression of any kind" and that threats were "misguided, unproductive and clear violations of international law."

South Africa

On August 23, 2018, Trump publicly instructed Secretary of State

to investigate South African farm attacks, an instruction which was widely described in mainstream media as the administration advocating for an unfounded white genocide conspiracy theory. Trump had apparently gotten his information from a Tucker Carlson segment on

. The media roundly berated the move, with ''New York (magazine), New York'' magazine claiming Trump was attempting to "change the conversation — to one about "white genocide" in South Africa", ''Esquire (magazine), Esquire'' reported that the "President of the United States is now openly promoting an international racist conspiracy theory as the official foreign policy of the United States". According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, SPLC, Trump had "tweeted out his intention to put the full force of the United States Department of State, U.S. State Department behind a White nationalism, white nationalist conspiracy theory". Causing "angry reaction in South Africa", many politicians responded critically including former List of ambassadors of the United States to South Africa, US Ambassador to South Africa Patrick Gaspard, RSA Deputy President of South Africa, Deputy President David Mabuza and Julius Malema MP, who responded to Trump, declaring "there is no white genocide in South Africa", and that the US President's intervention into their ongoing Land reform in South Africa, land reform issues "only made them more determined... to expropriate our land without compensation". Trump had previously caused controversy around the topic as a presidential candidate in 2016, when he republished content from a social media account named "WhiteGenocideTM".

Sudan

On October 23, 2020, the Israel–Sudan normalization agreement was finalized between Israel and the

International organizations and multilateral agreements

The Trump administration pursued Unilateralism, unilateralist policies abroad in alignment with the "America First" policy.

European Union

Trump was more adversarial to the European Union than his predecessors, regarding the union more as an economic competitor than a partner in foreign affairs. During his 2016 election campaign, Trump said of the EU, "the reason that it got together was like a consortium so that it could compete with the United States." U.S. foreign policy experts such as Strobe Talbott and Amie Kreppel regarded this assertion as incorrect, emphasizing that though the EU was established in part to rebuild the European economies after World War II, it was not created specifically to compete with the United States and that, in fact, the U.S. government initially approved of the EU's creation. Plenaria - Día 2 (44316130490)

In a 60-minute interview in mid-January 2017, with Michael Gove of the ''Times of London'' and Kai Diekmann of ''Bild'', U.S. president Donald Trump criticized the European Union as "basically a vehicle for Germany" claiming that it was a "very catastrophic mistake" on

's part to admit a million refugees – whom he refers to as "illegals". Full-text transcript In a letter to 27 European leaders, Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council, called these "worrying declarations" and claimed that the Trump administration seemed to "question the last 70 years of American foreign policy," placing the European Union in a "difficult situation". The relation soured even more when Jean-Claude Juncker jokingly said it would support the independence of the US State of Ohio and the city of Austin, Texas after Donald Trump backed the Brexit and encouraging other European countries to follow its example. In May 2017, Angela Merkel met with Trump. Trump's nationalist sentiments had already strained relations with several EU countries and other American allies, to the point where after a NATO summit, Merkel said that Europeans cannot rely on United States' help anymore. This came after Trump had said the Germans were "bad, very bad" and threatened to stop all car trade with Germany. In July 2018, Trump stated in an interview with CBS that the European Union is one of the United States' greatest foes globally, citing "what they do to us on trade". He followed this up with a tweet protesting the European Union vs. Google, EU's fining of Google $5.1 billion for a violation of antitrust laws, commenting that the EU continues to take advantage of the US. In December 2019, the United States urged the European countries to blacklist Hezbollah. Its ambassador to Germany

asked these countries to list Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, after a US civil contractor was killed in a rocket attack in

's Kirkuk Governorate, Kirkuk Province, which the US official said involved Kata'ib Hezbollah.

NATO

During the 2016 campaign, Trump called for a "rethink" of American involvement in NATO, stating that the United States pays too much to ensure the security of allies, stating that "NATO is costing us a fortune, and yes, we're protecting Europe with NATO, but we're spending a lot of money". Later in the same interview, he stated that the U.S. should not "decrease its role" in NATO but rather should decrease U.S. spending in regards to the organization. In a July 2016 interview, Trump "explicitly raised new questions about his commitment to automatically defend NATO allies," questioning whether he, as president, would automatically extend North Atlantic Treaty#Article 5, security guarantees to NATO members. Asked about a prospective Russia attack on NATO's Baltic states, Baltic members, Trump stated that he would decide whether to come to their aid only after reviewing whether those nations "have fulfilled their obligations to us." This would represent a sharp break with U.S. foreign traditions. As president, Trump said in a February 2017 speech that the United States strongly supports NATO, but continued to insist that NATO members were not paying their fair share as part of the alliance. In March 2017, Trump called upon U.S. allies increase their financial commitment to their own defense or compensate the United States for providing it, asserting that Germany and NATO owed "vast sums of money" to the U.S. for defense. In May 2017, on a visit to the new NATO headquarters, Trump called upon NATO to do more to fight terrorism and to add limiting immigration to its tasks. In the speech he did not explicitly reaffirm U.S. commitment to North Atlantic Treaty#Article 5, Article V, which obligates all NATO members to respond to an attack against any one member. White House spokesperson Sean Spicer later reaffirmed America's commitment to joint defense. Referencing countries that had not spent the minimum of 2% of their national GDP for defense by 2024, a guideline set by NATO, Trump claimed that "many of these nations owe massive amounts of money from past years." While most members of the alliance indeed had yet to reach the 2% target, the countries are not in arrears and they "do not owe anything" to the United States or to NATO. In April 2019, Secretary-General

played down the disputes with Trump, noting in an address to Congress that "there are differences" (noting disputes over trade, energy, climate change policy, the Iran nuclear agreement and burden sharing among NATO allies). Noting that NATO members are on track to increase defense spending by up to $100 billion, Stoltenberg said that "this has been the clear message from President Trump and this message is having a real impact." Critics of Trump charged him with failing to understand or honor the strategic significance of NATO and Collective security, collective defense to the U.S.'s national security, and of seeing the NATO alliance in transactional terms, with one describing Trump's views on collective defense as more akin to a "protection racket".

United Nations

During the campaign, Trump criticized the United Nations, saying that it was weak, incompetent, and "not a friend of democracy... freedom... the United States... Israel". Upon taking office, Trump appointed Nikki Haley as the List of ambassadors of the United States to the United Nations, United States Ambassador to the United Nations. On September 25, 2018, Trump addressed the United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations in New York City. After boasting that his administration had accomplished more in two years than almost any other U.S. administration in history, his speech was interrupted by laughter from the assembly. Trump claimed that the diplomats were laughing with him, rather than at him.

Paris climate agreement

In June 2017, Trump announced that the U.S. would withdraw from the Paris Agreement to combat climate change. The withdrawal left the U.S. as one of the world's only countries outside the Paris Agreement (which consolidated each country's voluntary pledge to reduce

and aimed to further emissions cuts), and made the U.S. the sole country to withdraw from the agreement after entering into it. Trump's withdrawal formally abandoned President Obama's goal of cutting U.S. emissions by 28% below 2005 levels by 2025. The U.S. withdrawal formally came into effect on November 4, 2020. Trump's decision to withdrawal from the agreement dismayed business leaders and U.S. allies and was condemned by scientists, which warned that U.S. withdrawal would deepen the

Geneva Consensus Declaration

In 2020, the United States joined 34 other countries from Asia, Africa, and South America to "reaffirm that there is no international right to abortion, nor any international obligation on the part of states to finance or facilitate abortion," in the ''Geneva Consensus Declaration on Promoting Women's Health and Strengthening the Family''.

Trade policy

When announcing his candidacy in June 2015, Trump said that his experience as a negotiator in private business would enhance his ability to negotiate better international trade deals as president.Bradner, Eric
Here's how Donald Trump could spark a trade war with Mexico and China
CNN (August 26, 2015). Trump identifies himself as a "free trader," but was widely described as a Protectionism, "protectionist".Jim Tankersley
Trump upends GOP message on economy
''Washington Post'' (August 31, 2015). Trump described supporters of international trade as "blood suckers." Trump's views on trade upended traditional Republican party policies favoring free trade. Binyamin Appelbaum, reporting for the ''New York Times'', summarized Trump's proposals as breaking with 200 years of economics orthodoxy.Charles Lane
Donald Trump's contempt for the free market
''Washington Post'' (October 21, 2015). American economic writer Bruce Bartlett argued that Trump's

views have roots in the Whig Party (United States), Whig Party program of the 1830s. He noted that many Americans were sympathetic to these views, while saying this was nonetheless not a good justification to adopt them. Canadian writer Lawrence Solomon describes Trump's position on trade as similar to that as of pre-Ronald Reagan, Reagan Republican presidents, such as Herbert Hoover (who signed the Smoot–Hawley Tariff Act, Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act) and Richard Nixon (who ran on a protectionist platform). A January 2019 United States Intelligence Community, intelligence community assessment concluded that Trump's trade policies and unilateralism had "damaged" traditional alliances and induced foreign partners to seek new relationships.

NAFTA, Mexico trade dispute, and USMCA

During the campaign, Trump condemned the

(NAFTA), saying that if elected president, "We will either renegotiate it, or we will break it." During his meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after becoming president, Trump stated that he viewed the Canadian situation different than Mexico, and only envisioned minor changes for Canada, with much larger ones for Mexico. During the campaign, Trump vowed to impose tariffs — in the range of 15 to 35 percent — on companies that move their operations to Mexico. He specifically criticized the Ford Motor Co.,

, and

. The dispute was partially resolved by the USMCA, which requires Mexican auto manufacturers to pay their workers a minimum wage of $16/hr. After taking office, White House press secretary Sean Spicer noted that Trump was considering imposing a 20% tariff on Mexican imports to the United States as one of several options that would pay for his proposed border wall. The Mexican government stated that if unilateral tariffs were imposed on Mexico, it would consider retaliating by imposing tariffs on goods Mexico imports from the United States. In September 2018, the United States, Mexico, and Canada reached an agreement to replace NAFTA with the

(USMCA). NAFTA remained in force until the ratification of the USMCA in July 2020.

Trade with China

During the campaign, Trump proposed a 45 percent

on Chinese exports to the United States to give "American workers a level playing field." According to an analysis by ''Capital Economics'', Trump's proposed tariff may hurt U.S. consumers by driving U.S. retail price of Chinese made goods up 10 percent, because of few alternative suppliers in key product classes that China sells to the U.S. The goods trade deficit with China in 2015 was $367.2 billion. The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) reported in December 2014 that "Growth in the U.S. goods trade deficit with China between 2001 and 2013 eliminated or displaced 3.2 million U.S. jobs, 2.4 million (three-fourths) of which were in manufacturing." EPI reported these losses were distributed across all 50 states. Trump pledged "swift, robust and unequivocal" action against Chinese piracy,

American goods, and theft of U.S.

s and

, and condemned China's "illegal

and lax labor and environmental standards." In a May 2016 campaign speech, Trump responded to concerns regarding a potential trade war with "We're losing $500 billion in trade with China. Who the hell cares if there's a trade war?"

Trans-Pacific Partnership

During the 2016 campaign, Trump opposed the

that the Obama administration had negotiated, calling it "insanity. That deal should not be supported and it should not be allowed to happen." He said the US was "giving away" concessions to China. Days after taking office, on January 23, 2017, Trump withdrew from the proposed deal, citing the need to protect American workers from competition by workers in low-wage countries. The international trade agreement never took effect.

World Trade Organization

During the 2016 campaign, Trump called the

(WTO) a "disaster". He said that if U.S. companies moved their manufacturing operations abroad, he would place tariffs of 15–35% on these products when they were sold to U.S. consumers. When informed that this would be contrary to the rules of the WTO, he answered "even better. Then we're going to renegotiate or we're going to pull out [of the WTO]." The United States remained an active WTO member throughout 2020.

Global health security

World Health Organization

COVID-19 travel bans

In late January 2020, the Trump administration banned travel to the U.S. by mainland Chinese nationals, allowing US citizens abroad and legal US residents to return. On March 11, President Trump announced a travel ban on foreigners coming from the Schengen Area, and later added Ireland and the United Kingdom to the list. Unlike the bans on entry by mainland Chinese and Iranian nationals, these were rescinded by Trump and due to expire January 26, 2021.

Military

Funding, readiness, and oversight

As president, Trump frequently said that he inherited a "depleted" United States Armed Forces, military from his predecessor,

, despite evidence to the contrary in regards to funding, readiness, and infrastructure.Dan Evon
Did Trump Inherit a 'Depleted' Military From Obama?
Snopes (September 26, 2020).Bill McCarthy
Trump exaggerates spending on U.S. military rebuild
''PolitiFact'' (January 10, 2020). Retired United States Army, Army general David Petraeus and military analysts Michael E. O'Hanlon and Lawrence Korb also denied Trump's claims of a U.S. military readiness crisis, regarding them as inaccurate. Under the four fiscal years of the Trump administration, U.S. military funding totaled about $2.5 trillion, about $100 billion in additional funds annually, but spending was lower than during Obama's first term (2009–2013) when using data adjusted for inflation.Christopher Giles
US election 2020: Has Trump kept his promises on the military?
BBC News (October 16, 2020). In the early years of his presidency, Trump sought to shift authority over military operations back to the Pentagon by loosening rules of engagement and reducing White House oversight in the Command hierarchy, chain of command, a departure from his predecessor. Although the streamlined decision-making was welcomed by many in the military as reducing political micromanaging and increasing military responsiveness and command flexibility, it also drew repeated criticism for sharply increasing civilian casualties abroad. In 2020, ''Mother Jones (magazine), Mother Jones'' reported that, under Trump, "the US military was pursuing a strategy that tolerated a higher risk of bloodshed..." in Afghanistan and that from 2016 to 2019, the number of Afghan civilians killed by international airstrikes increased by 330 percent. After 2017, civilian casualties caused by U.S. forces in Yemen escalated in "...the most intensive period of strikes in that country by any U.S. president since 2001," according to Airwars. In April 2017, after approving the use of the GBU-43/B MOAB, MOAB 2017 Nangarhar airstrike, on the battlefield for the first time, Trump commented "What I do is I authorize my military ... We have given them total authorization and that's what they're doing and, frankly, that's why they've been so successful lately." Trump often boasted of the U.S. military's weapons arsenal to the point of exaggeration, with weapons experts noting Trump's comments in regards to the W76, W76-2 thermonuclear warhead and

fighter jet in particular as "extravagant" and "sometimes straying beyond reality..."

Overseas presence

Under the Trump administration, there was a modest decrease in U.S. troop levels in Withdrawal of United States troops from Afghanistan (2020–2021), Afghanistan, Withdrawal of United States troops from Iraq (2020–2021), Iraq, and

after an initial increase.Michael Crowley
Trump's Campaign Talk of Troop Withdrawals Doesn't Match Military Reality
''New York Times'' (October 11, 2020). By October 2020, there were 4,500 U.S. ground troops in Afghanistan, 3,000 in Iraq, and 750 in Syria, amounting to almost 10,000 combined. Trump's efforts to withdraw additional troops from Afghanistan and Germany were blocked by the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, which limited his authority to withdraw forces from those countries. Trump vetoed this bill, but the veto was overridden. Trump touted his legacy being the first president in decades to not start any "new wars", only using legislation passed by previous administrations to conduct ongoing foreign interventions and wars he inherited. The Trump administration didAmerican military intervention in Somalia (2007–present)#2017, increase drone strokes in Somalia and bolster troop presence in Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf region, particularly during the Persian Gulf crisis against Iran. In February 2020, the Trump administration signed the Doha Agreement, a peace agreement with the

to conclude the

. In December 2020, Trump ordered United States Africa Command, AFRICOM to withdraw 700 U.S. troops from Somalia, dispersing them to other East African countries such as Kenya and Djibouti; U.S. drone strikes and cooperation with Somali forces were expected to continue.

Relations with military leadership

Trump ruptured traditional U.S. norms of Civil–military relations, civil-military relations and strained presidential relations with military leadership.Phil Stewart, Idrees Ali & Steve Holland
How Trump fell out of love with his generals, and why the feeling is mutual
Reuters (September 23, 2020). He initially expressed admiration and praise for his generals but began deriding them in both public and private in the later years of his presidency. In 2020, Reuters observed that Trump grew increasingly irritated when the advice of his generals "ran against his wishes," and that he was "frustrated by the wars he inherited and uncomfortable with an apolitical military leadership he sometimes sees as disloyal." In 2020, Trump publicly derided U.S. military commanders, accusing them of pushing for war to Military–industrial complex, benefit military contractors. ''The Atlantic'' reported in 2020 that while on a visit to France, Trump had disparaged U.S. military personnel, including fallen soldiers, in crude and demeaning language; CNN and Fox News corroborated much of the reporting while Trump denied making the comments. The controversy only further strained his relations with the military late in his term.Barbara Starr & Ryan Browne
Trump launches unprecedented attack on military leadership he appointed
CNN (September 8, 2020).

Surveillance

Withdrawal from the Open Skies Treaty

In May 2020, Trump said he intended to withdraw the US from "Open Skies," a 2002 treaty between three dozen countries that aims to promote military transparency. Under the treaty, participants are allowed to perform reconnaissance flights to gather information about each other's military activities. The European Union said it hoped the US would not withdraw. In explaining his position, Trump alleged that Russia had violated the terms of the treaty; Russia denied doing so. On November 22, 2020, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Council stated via Twitter that the 6-month period is over and the US is no longer party to the Treaty.

Nuclear policy

During the campaign, Trump said that the U.S.'s control is getting weaker and that its nuclear arsenal is old and does not work. When asked at March 2016 campaign town hall with MSNBC's Chris Matthews whether he would rule out the use of nuclear weapons, Trump answered that the option of using nuclear weapons should never be taken off the table.

Nuclear proliferation

During the campaign, Trump expressed support for South Korea, Japan and Saudi Arabia having nuclear weapons if they would be unwilling to pay the United States for security."Donald Trump fights to win over women; Reince Priebus on possibility of contested GOP convention"

(April 3, 2016): "At some point, we have to say, you know what, we're better off if Japan protects itself against this maniac in North Korea....My number one choice is, leave it the way it is, but they have to pay us because we cannot afford to continue to lose the billions and billions of dollars that we're losing in order to defend Japan and Germany and South Korea and Saudi Arabia". He also deemed it inevitable, "It's going to happen anyway. It's only a question of time. They're going to start having them or we have to get rid of them entirely." Trump's tentative support for nuclear proliferation was in contradiction to decades of bipartisan U.S. consensus on the issue.

Pakistani nuclear arsenal

During the campaign, Trump was critical of Pakistan, comparing it to North Korea, calling it "probably the most dangerous country" in the world, and claiming that Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction#Security concerns of the United States, Pakistan's nuclear weapons posed a "serious problem." He advocated improving India–United States relations, relations with India as a supposed "check" to Pakistan. He said that his government would fully cooperate with India in doing so. However, there seems to have been an uptick in relations after Imran Khan came to power. Speaking of Imran Khan in a bilateral summit, Trump said, "I've heard they've made great progress. And under this leader — he's a great leader — I think he wants to make great progress because there's no solution the other way. The other way is only going to lead to death and chaos and poverty. It's all it's going to lead to. I mean, he understands it. Your Prime Minister understands it."