As Trump’s time runs out, this could be his most dangerous legacy: a world divided into three | Steve Bloomfield
We’ve heard much about the end of the west. At the proposed summit between Trump, Putin and Xi, those fears could crystallise In the final two years of a US presidency, when Congress has been lost, approval ratings have sunk like a stone and their party has started to think about who’s coming next, the person occupying the Oval Office can feel their power draining away. Domestic legislation,…
As Trump's presidency nears its end, his most dangerous legacy could be a world divided into three. With Congress lost, sinking approval ratings, and a party looking towards the future, the US president can feel their power diminishing. During the final years of a presidency, when bipartisan cooperation is scarce, domestic legislation stalls. However, presidents still hold power on the global stage until their term concludes.
In 1992, George HW Bush sent troops to Somalia to help end a famine. Bill Clinton attempted to bring peace to the Middle East by ending the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Barack Obama restored diplomatic ties with Cuba and pushed for the Iran nuclear deal. In just 10 days, Donald Trump will face a world that could be drastically different from the one he inherited.
With the midterms over, the US plans to restart its war with Iran, exercise military cooperation with Israel, and withdraw diplomats from the region. Trump's Ukraine policy has already taken a turn for the worse, with him praising Putin as a "humanitarian" in a televised meeting. A summit between Trump, Putin, and Xi Jinping is being proposed, which could have devastating consequences for global governance.
If this summit were to take place, it would divide the world into spheres of influence, with each leader aiming to transform the way the world is governed. This would have far-reaching consequences for Europe, East Asia, and Australia. While the US sees the affairs of other countries as relevant only if they threaten their interests, Putin, Xi, and Trump see economic ties and future control over technology as key factors.
At stake is not just territorial control, but also the possibility of increased economic and technological cooperation between the three nations, potentially altering the nature of geopolitics. In doing so, they may replace Europe as the primary global power bloc, shifting the balance of power in the world.
Written by urgent.news from The Guardian US's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
