TOI correspondent from Washington: Early trips to China and India loom large in Donald Trump’s trade-driven foreign policy agenda, according to his advisors. The incoming President triumphantly flew into Washington DC on the weekend for his inauguration and attended a fireworks display that could well be a metaphorical preview of his second presidency.
Pilloried at the start of his first stint in the White House for being unprepared for the office, Trump has been presidential even before taking oath of office this time, with pro-active moves that includes reaching out to foreign leaders and interlocutors even as incumbent Joe Biden is stumbling out. Trump advisors told the Wall Street Journal that besides reaching out directly to China’s President Xi Jinping to discuss a possible trip to China, he has also expressed interest in visiting India as early as April.
Preliminary discussions have already been initiated with External Affairs minister S.Jaishankar during his visit here in December with follow-up action likely in the coming week after the inauguration when the Indian foreign minister is expected to parley with his counterparts from US, Japan, and Australia to discuss the upcoming QUAD summit.
Trump’s focus on China and India soon after taking office jettisons Washington DC’s long-standing Atlanticist-centric worldview with his disdain for Europe, Nato, and neighbors Canada and Mexico, all of whom he regards as a pushover. China and India are evidently in a different basket requiring Trump’s purported deal-making skills to achieve a better trade outcome to offset their surplus with greater US exports.
“I just spoke to Chairman Xi Jinping of China. The call was a very good one for both China and the USA. It is my expectation that we will solve many problems together, and starting immediately. We discussed balancing Trade, Fentanyl, TikTok, and many other subjects. President Xi and I will do everything possible to make the World more peaceful and safe!” Trump wrote on his social media platform soon after the call.
Trump’s emphasis on foreign policy despite having promised the moon to his MAGA base in terms of domestic economic outcomes like bringing down prices is evident in the line-up of foreign dignitaries, including business leaders, who have been invited for the inauguration. Among them are Mukesh Ambani and his wife Nita Ambani, who met the incoming President on Saturday and will be attending the inauguration on Monday.
The showy speed with which Trump dispensation is moving on the foreign policy front belies the traditional caution and choreography associated with it. Even with regards to domestic issues, the MAGA supremo is expected to issue dozens of executive orders, perhaps up to 100, to change or reverse many of the Biden era policies within hours of taking office on Monday, many of them relating to immigration and energy.
