- As the whole world watched with bated breath, the coronation of Donald Trump as the president of the United States of America took place with great pomp and splendor. As promised during his bruising campaign, the maverick and extremely unpredictable Trump did initiate his pet projects of import taxes on products originating from different countries around the world. It’s another matter altogether that whatever import taxes imposed were paused, reduced, reimposed, and granted extended deadlines to take effect. Expectedly, several countries made a beeline for the USA to impress upon the leader to go slow on the tariff moves. But a country like China went ahead and introduced countermeasures like reciprocal taxes without any palpable worries.
PC: BBC
- Remember, one of the most prominent boasts that emanated from Trump was to stop the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, no sooner did he assume the office of the presidency of the USA. Within 24 hours, he boasted. People closely following world affairs, especially those tuned in to the geostrategic and geopolitical scenario, would know how the ongoing conflict has panned out despite the global community vociferously demanding a halt. Soon after assuming the office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was treated in a humiliating manner at the White House by President Trump and his deputy, Vance. Whatever hopes of calling or a ceasefire simply vanished into thin air as the conflict between the two has worsened in the last few days.
- It raises questions about Trump’s approach to Russia’s boss, Putin, in contrast to his tirades against other world leaders. After multiple tete-a-tetes with the Russian leader, officially and behind the scenes, Trump now says he’s running out of patience with Putin. Massive Russian aerial attacks on Ukraine last weekend killed 12 people and injured 79. Trump, naturally, vented on Truth Social: something had happened to Putin, and he has gone absolutely CRAZY! Trump even held out a threat: I’ve always said that he (Putin) wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that’s proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia. It’s difficult to say whether Trump will follow through on promised crippling sanctions against Russia.
PC: CBS News
- It’s worth recollecting how Trump has a history of flip-flops when it comes to Putin. Since at least 2013, Trump has at various points touted his admiration for the Russian leader’s so-called toughness and wit. Term it admiration, cozying up, or simply one maverick looking at another, Trump’s view about Putin is different from what he espouses against others. There’s a clear difference between how he refers to Putin – carefully – and other world leaders who get the full Trump treatment. Consider the recent tongue-lashing that South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa got at the White House. Which begs the question, why is the kid-glove treatment for Putin? He’s been tough on Zelenskyy. But what’s the deal with taking on Putin? Only Trump knows.
