The Death of Diplomacy: how Trump’s firebrand tactics are destroying our reputation

It’s no secret that Donald Trump thinks America should be put first. From his campaign slogan and merchandise to the renouncement of major trade and security agreements, the President has never shied away from criticizing the state of affairs in the world today, especially the role of the United States. Despite this foreshadowing, however, few people could have guessed that less than a year later, the infamous businessman would be trading insults with North Korea, endangering our allies by sharing military intelligence, falsely accusing Iran of violations, shoving prime ministers, befriending Vladimir Putin in the face of an election collusion investigation, and more — all within 8 months of entering office. Aside from embarrassing the United States on the world stage, Trump’s actions could have serious consequences, both for the future of the U.S. and of the world.

“The Trump Administration is committed to a foreign policy focused on American interests and American national security.” This line, taken directly from the White House website, is the first statement describing the “America First Foreign Policy” that characterizes the administration’s international agenda. Compare this to the statement on the archived Obama White House website, from an address to the UN General Assembly in 2014: “For America, the choice is clear: We choose hope over fear. We see the future not as something out of our control, but as something we can shape for the better through concerted and collective effort…we choose to work for the world as it should be, as our children deserve it to be.” The contrast is striking. The latter is optimistic, inclusive, and forward-looking; the former is introspective, exclusive, and focused on the present, advocating peace through individual rather than collective strength.

The irony of this approach to foreign policy is that it impedes its own aims. Strengthening and prioritizing the U.S. is meant to earn us greater respect; in reality, our standing on the world stage has been rapidly declining since the end of the Obama presidency. By wavering on NATO commitment and pulling out of the Paris Climate Accord, Trump signaled a desire to step back as leader of the free world, and it’s still unclear who will step into that void. Couple that with the provocative and unfiltered persona of the former reality star — including unscripted rants and physical aggression (see: handshakes) — and things are not looking good.

President Trump, pictured here with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, is known for his aggressive and dominant handshake tactics, which include forceful pulling and hand-patting.

In fairness, it’s not uncommon for world leaders to be controversial or disliked, including U.S. presidents. Polling conducted in the past 15 years by the Pew Research Center, a nonpartisan think tank, shows some interesting trends in world perceptions of U.S. reputation, including a spike in positive reputation among European countries during the transition from Bush to Obama; this growth was tempered by a sharp decline in popularity for in Israel and Iran, among others in the Middle East. Trump’s presidency has had the opposite effect worldwide, especially among U.S. allies; he was more popular than Obama, however, in both Israel and Russia.

President Obama‘s election corresponded to a sharp spike in popularity for the United States among many Western European nations following the relatively low approval for President Bush.

President Trump’s own ratings were somewhat less promising, falling far behind those of his predecessor and former campaign opponent.

Given his obsession with ratings, these results should give President Trump an incentive to take a step back and negotiate the United States into a more favorable position. Instead, he has become more emboldened. Most recently, Trump took on North Korea, calling Kim Jong Un “Little Rocket Man” while simultaneously promising to destroy the country; this is just the latest in a long and unbounded list of insults, character attacks, and threats he has directed at other world leaders. Nikki Haley, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has proved adept at promoting Trump’s foreign policy in the international body, but her boss, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, has been markedly less successful. Tillerson’s State Department is crumbling: hundreds of staff positions are unfilled, his trusted advisors lack experience in the field, and the department lacks a unified strategy. The media, both domestic and foreign, is having a field day; meanwhile, European leaders like Angela Merkel are struggling to reconcile their own diplomatic interests with rising anti-American sentiment.

The latest tweet from Mr. Trump, who is certainly taking steps that his predecessors did not in dealing with “Rocket Man” Kim Jong-un.

It’s unclear what will happen as a result of this shift in U.S. policy. For now, President Trump seems to be all words, as many of his promises for new security and trade deals look increasingly unlikely. With growing hostility and declining trust in the United States, however, the world is facing a leadership crisis that could permanently impact security and order for years to come. What happens if the president takes it too far and provokes Iran, or North Korea?

We may not be around long enough to find out.