By Amram Margalit – Leverate

We’ve seen it with Europe and NATO, with China, Russia, and now strongly with Canada and the NAFTA pact – President Trump’s has a very unorthodox approach to the countries he’s trading with, and he always leaves you wondering which one he considers a friend, and which one an adversary. The ongoing international trade war also contributes to the impression that

Trump treats longstanding allies as economic foes. In recent months, Trump has focused on traditional allies and trading partners in his attempt to reshape America’s international trade relationships.

The actions of the Trump administration arise partly from personality and partly from political reality. In business, he was the king of the deal, a ruthless negotiator, happy to use strong arm tactics in a gladiatorial bid for the best deal. The success of these methods in business has turned them into his primary method of negotiation: the willingness to bully, threaten and intimidate. Donald Trump cannot turn away from the tactics that brought him unparalleled success over the years.

This style has moved from the business sphere to the political one. Prior to the visit in North Korea, Trump spent months engaging in inflammatory, aggressive jousting with North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, in an attempt to intimidate and pressure the North Koreans into concessions. His fiery style has been seen across the political spectrum, and both friends and foe alike have felt the sting of his twitter account. One cannot help but contrast Donald Trump’s behavior to that of his predecessor, Barak Obama, and his administration’s genial relationships internationally. One also cannot help but wonder as to the potential difference in impact due to their different styles and ideology.

The contrast to the Obama administration serves also as a good understanding of the political mandate that was thrust upon President Trump. The success of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign was in most part due to his anti-establishment posture, or more particularly his lack of involvement in the “Boys Club” of US politics. The voting public had grown tiresome with the status-quo and wanted a shakeup that only an outsider could provide.

Trump entered the political arena with no diplomatic experience, and a reputation for brilliant deal making. The country voted for him for what he could provide – an aggressive, take-no-prisoners attitude. A chance to ruffle a few feathers, whether it be congress or the rest of the world. Ever the pragmatist, Trump understood that his interests would not benefit from taking on congress, but saw fertile ground for improvement in the international trade arena. In his views, the existing US trade deals were harmful, serving political interests and cronyism rather than the US public. Making the case against weak foreign policy having a negative impact on the US is an easy sell, whether it’s true or false. And Trump, with the full weight of the US treasury behind him, has the biggest stick in history with which to drive America’s peers into better deals.

So what does Trump think of other economies? He probably views them first and foremost as business competitors. In this narrative, the traditional categories of ‘friend vs. foe’ diminish, and other than basic business etiquette, the only rule that applies above all is ‘maximize profits’.

About the Author:

Amram Margalit is a professional writer who has worked in a wide range of settings, including technology companies, nonprofits, and the entertainment industry. Within these positions, Amram has provided quality content and advertising services and is currently the Content Manager at Leverate.