Does America seek to restore its alliances? After three months of insults, tariffs, and even threats to annex some of its closest allies, the Trump administration now finds itself in need of assistance.
The US President has intensified a trade conflict with China that he appears uncertain how to resolve. Consequently, the administration is hurriedly exploring ways to gain leverage over Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is not inclined to yield to Trump’s aggressive tactics.
However, there is a potential strategy that could be effective. This approach would leverage America’s strength and global influence, potentially pressuring Beijing to address ongoing US concerns regarding market access, intellectual property theft, industrial espionage, and other related issues. The challenge lies in the fact that this strategy would contradict Trump’s “America first” philosophy.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent noted on Fox Business this week that US allies, including Japan, South Korea, and India, are set to engage in trade discussions with Washington, along with Vietnam.
“Everyone is coming to the table, effectively surrounding China,” he stated. Bessent emphasized that a key focus of these discussions should be a shared objective: “How do we encourage China to rebalance? That is the significant victory here.”
On Friday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt was questioned about why American allies would assist in countering China, given Trump’s approach of treating both friends and adversaries similarly. She responded, “You’ll need to speak with our allies who are reaching out to us. The phones are ringing off the hooks. They have clearly indicated that they require the United States, our markets, and our consumer base.”
However, since returning to the Oval Office, Trump has taken actions aimed at undermining coalitions of like-minded democracies. Throughout the week, he has criticized the European Union, stating, “I always say it was formed to really do damage to the United States in trade.”
Trump is not alone in his disdain for Europe. Vice President JD Vance expressed his negative views about the continent at the Munich Security Forum and during discussions among officials regarding airstrikes in Yemen.
Trump’s antagonism extends to the Western Hemisphere as well.
The concept of a unified North American trading bloc has long been viewed as a potential defense against China. Yet, Trump has consistently threatened to dominate Canada and has imposed some of his harshest tariffs on Mexico. New Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has cautioned that the longstanding relationship with Washington has changed.
Nevertheless, the notion of forming an allied front to address China’s trade practices is so sensible that it raises the question of why it wasn’t proposed earlier.
In fact, it was proposed, but Trump dismissed it.
On his first day in office in 2017, Trump exited the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which comprised 12 nations, including allies such as Mexico, Canada, Japan, and Australia, while notably excluding China. He also terminated the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, a proposed agreement that aimed to connect the two largest markets globally.
The pressing concern now is whether Trump has distanced the United States from its allies to the extent that they may no longer respond to his outreach.
“The US is currently perceived as an extremely unreliable partner on the global stage, and I am uncertain about how we can restore that reliability,” stated Jason Furman, former chair of the Council of Economic Advisers during the Obama administration, in an interview with CNN on Thursday.
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