ANALYSIS | Trump's Diplomacy: A New Method Of International Relations
Photo Credit: BBC News
US President Donald Trump has not hesitated to break with standard practices on international diplomacy since he was inaugurated on Jan. 20, straying from norms even more so than in his first presidency. The nationalism-fueled rhetoric espoused by his Cabinet picks, fellow Republican Party members, and supporters directly opposes the unconventional plans, deals, and ideas put forward during the beginning of Trump's second stint in the White House.
According to The New York Times, on May 21, Trump announced his gratitude for the estimated $200 million USD Boeing 747 gifted to him by the Prime Minister of Qatar, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani. This gift came on the heels of a multi-day diplomatic escapade touring America's allies in the Middle East. Trump also met with the President of the UAE, the Emir of Qatar, and both the King and Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia.
The massive jet will be used as the new Air Force One, contingent on its retrofitting to the specifications that all presidential planes have. The Senate Democrats, in an official press release, decried the gift as "the largest foreign bribe to an American president in modern history” and a potential crack in national security. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer also attempted to pass a bill in the Senate that would ban the Air Force One designation from being applied to any previously foreign-owned jets.
Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine also had security concerns surrounding the plane. “The plane would have to be thoroughly scrubbed to ensure that listening devices had not been implanted,” she said, according to CNBC. “That would take a great deal of time, to make sure that it meets the security standards that the president needs. Ultimately, I don’t understand why we would pursue this for the new aircraft that the president needs.”
After Trump's term comes to an end, the plane will be given to the Trump Presidential Library Foundation, meaning that it will be his own property. An anonymous US official commented to AP News that this could be controversial, as early estimates state that the US government will spend over $1.5 billion USD on upgrades to the plane.
On Fox News, recently appointed Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff described Trump as extremely compelling when talking to Russian President Vladimir Putin. "There is no other human being like [Trump]," Witkoff said.
According to Reuters, despite assurances that negotiations for a possible end to the war in Ukraine are proceeding well, Putin has refused to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and has refused any ceasefire offer that does not include a pledge to cease NATO expansion on Russian borders and the lifting of sanctions on Russia.
Trump's publicly released opinions on the issue varied. On May 28, he warned Moscow that officials were "playing with fire" in choosing to continue fighting, according to Reuters, despite being openly and frequently dismissive of measures that would expand military and economic support to Ukraine. The most notable example of this is the Trump-endorsed One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which includes cuts to support for Ukraine and reductions in US deployments to aid Ukraine in military training, under the guise of "budget reconciliation."
Still, the Oval Office has remained steadfast in its relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in the face of ongoing Israeli war crimes in the Palestinian Territories. On Feb. 25, Trump drew fire from both sides of the political spectrum after posting an AI-generated video of a resort town built in Gaza, adorned with golden statues of himself, American flags, and Christian imagery.
Later that month, according to Foreign Affairs, he made multiple suggestions of a "voluntary migration" of Palestinians from the occupied and currently besieged areas to neighbouring countries. This proposition received support from the Israeli administration and prompted Netanyahu to announce that his desired end for the war would include the annexation of all Israeli settlements, according to Reuters.
According to the Council on Foreign Relations, following the attack from Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, the US has given at least USD$12.5 billion in direct military aid to Israel, while Brown University analysts estimate the figure is closer to USD$17.9 billion. Direct military aid is distinct from general economic aid, debt forgiveness, or funds earmarked for military purposes, as it only includes transfers of equipment, training, ammunition, or other military supplies.
Establishing a "Qualitative Military Edge" — a term coined and affirmed almost unanimously in 2008 — is a key policy that informs US foreign policy in the region. This policy encourages US lawmakers to take every measure possible to ensure that Israel "has the ability to counter and defeat any credible conventional military threat from any individual state or possible coalition of states or from non-state actors, while sustaining minimal damages and casualties, through the use of superior military means, possessed in sufficient quantity," according to research from Cornell Law School.
The concept has been upheld by every president since, and Trump is no different. According to a government press release, Trump bypassed Congress on Mar. 1 and sent almost $4 billion USD worth of direct military aid to Israel, removing a moratorium on the provision of 2,000 pound bombs, and rescinding National Security Memorandum 20, which required nations receiving military aid to show that they are used per international law—two key Biden policies.
A considerable amount of Trump's diplomatic interactions are in direct contravention of past US protocol, instead coming out of his personal playbook. As a result, his style of diplomatic strategy remains controversial.