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U.S. foreign policy during the first presidency of Donald Trump was noted for its unpredictability and reneging on prior international commitments, upending diplomatic conventions, embracing political and economic brinkmanship with most adversaries, and stronger relations with traditional allies. Donald Trump's "America First" policy pursued nationalist and unilateralist foreign policy objectives while prioritizing bilateral relations over multinational agreements. As president, Trump described himself as a nationalist and a globalist while espousing views that have been characterized as isolationist, non-interventionist, and protectionist, although the "isolationist" label has been disputed, including by Trump himself, and periods of his political career have been described by the alternative term "semi-isolationist". Trump personally praised some populist, neo-nationalist, illiberal, and authoritarian 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, 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 to senior advisor Jared Kushner. Former ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson 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, budget cuts and Trump's reliance on White House advisors led to media reports that the State Department had been noticeably "sidelined". Former CIA director Mike Pompeo 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 INF Treaty, the UNHRC and UNESCO, and the Paris Agreement, and urging NATO allies to increase financial burden sharing. The Trump administration introduced a ban on travel from certain Muslim-majority countries and recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. He sought rapprochement with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as part of efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula, although North Korea continued to expand its nuclear arsenal. Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Iran nuclear deal and increased sanctions against Iran, precipitating several confrontations between the two countries. He increased belligerence against Venezuela and Nicaragua while overseeing drawdowns of U.S. troops from Syria, Iraq, Somalia, and Afghanistan, while agreeing with the Taliban for a conditional full withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. He also increased U.S. drone strikes in Africa, and continued the U.S.'s war on terror and campaign against the Islamic State terror organization, including overseeing the death of its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in October 2019. In January 2020, Trump ordered a drone strike in Iraq which assassinated Iranian major general Qasem Soleimani.
The Trump administration often used economic pressure to enforce its foreign policy goals. Trump's import tariffs agitated trade partners and triggered a trade war with China. He also signed the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), a continental trade agreement which replaced NAFTA. Trump's administration brokered the Kosovo–Serbia agreement, the Abraham Accords, and subsequent Arab-Israeli normalization agreements with Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco.
Scholars have offered differing interpretations of Donald Trump's foreign policy. Some have described it as nationalist and populist, highlighting Trump's opposition to the foreign policy establishment, international organizations and migration. Other scholars argue that key themes of Trump's foreign policy - particularly America First and Make America Great Again — draw on ideological narratives associated with fascism, such as themes of national decline and rebirth. According to this view, Trump's rhetoric and policy positions contributed to the normalization and legitimization of exclusionary politics and the justification of hostility or violence toward racialized minorities and political opponents.
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."
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 (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 Trans-Pacific Partnership, 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 (FTA): the USMCA (with Canada and Mexico), which modified NAFTA. 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's chemical weapon attack, of sarin, against civilians, Trump authorized a limited cruise missile strike on a Syrian air base. After Russia blocked U.S.-sponsored measures against the Syrian regime at the UN Security Council, the U.S. took unilateral action. The attack drew international support and claims it was justified, citing enforcement of the Chemical Weapons Convention (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 North Korea 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 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, Vatican City, Belgium, and Italy. In Brussels, he addressed North Atlantic Treaty Organization (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, 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 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. 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. 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 to establish the United States Space Force, 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 Jerusalem.
On May 18, 2018, Trump announced that the United States would withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, 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 Kim Jong-un 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. 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 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 United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA). During his 2016 campaign, Trump condemned the North American Free Trade Agreement (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 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.