by Askold S. Lozynskyj
Certainly one of the most egregious lies emanating from the Trump campaign and the MAGA crowd is that Trump and America were respected by the global democratic community while he was president. There is so much evidence to the contrary that the Trump campaign should relinquish this boast. Many considered Trump a buffoon, others simply winced at his behaviour. And there was a prevailing fear of what may ensue in global security.
I would like to point to two, nothing less than disgraceful, Trump Summer of 2018 events during which the world not only did not manifest respect for the American leader but was appalled by his behaviour. At the Quebec G-7 Summit Trump insisted that Russian president Vladimir Putin should have been included. The other members disagreed in view of Russia’s invasion and annexation of Ukrainian territory. They then agreed together with Trump upon a final communique. Trump left the Summit without signing it.
The Canadian press took a baseball bat to Trump. But inasmuch as Trump had offended the host Prime minister Trudeau, I will defer to the Europeans who may have been more objective.
The German “Der Spiegel” reported:
“”The G-7 debacle shows the real problem with Donald Trump’s politics is Donald Trump. His behaviour follows no order, no logic, instead just the desire to be the best, most important and biggest. The collapse of the West, the destruction of decades of friendship is simply a product of his unprecedented ego trips.”
The editorial board of one of France’s biggest dailies, “Le Monde”, said:
“One thing is clear: the president of the United States, Donald Trump, is better disposed to the North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, a man whose dynasty has locked his country and his people into a megalomaniac madness, than to his European, Japanese and Canadian allies. This kind of behavior has no precedent in the practice of diplomacy between allies. The Europeans must learn lessons from it now.”
Trump then went to a Summit with Putin in Helsinki, Finland. This was the nadir of American global leadership as at the press conference Trump behaved as Putin’s surrogate acknowledging that Russia did not interfere in the 2016 American election and stressing his and Putin’s “friendship”.
“I hold both countries responsible. I think that the United States has been foolish. We’ve all been foolish. We’re all to blame.”
Much more recently in July of this year with the spectre of a Trump return as president quite real, the 2024 NATO Summit in Washington was a Summit of fear. The BBC reported:
“Camille Grand, a French former official who was one of NATO’s deputy leaders throughout the Trump administration, described himself as “much more worried” than colleagues who think a
second term may be “Trump [term] one on steroids” but ultimately workable for the alliance. “He doesn’t have the same sort of guard rails, he doesn’t have the same sort of adults in the room. And he has around him a team that is trying to turn his instinct into policy,” said Mr Grand, who is now a fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations. Four members of visiting delegations, who asked to remain anonymous, told the BBC their concern was not necessarily that a Trump administration would withdraw entirely from NATO, as he has threatened before. Rather it is a fear that the US commitment to the alliance’s core principle of collective security – “all for one and one for all”, meaning any ally under attack can expect defence from the others – could wane.”
I recently visited three countries in Europe on my way to and from Ukraine. In Frankfurt at the airport an assistant volunteered her fear that Trump might be elected president. In Zurich Airport on the way back another assistant looking over our passports voiced the same concern. In Krakow, Poland, where we stayed for two days, a guide and a hotel receptionist voiced their disapproval of Trump. Hearing that, an Irish group of tourists piled on. Not surprisingly, I heard no endorsement of Trump anywhere in Europe. I suppose I should have gone to Hungary where they have their own Trump.
In Ukraine a representative of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and an elderly lady just leaving services at a Ukrainian Catholic Church both told me that they were praying that Trump not be elected. Their spontaneous comments were peppered with such words as “very bad for Ukraine” and “an embarrassment for America as a global leader”. A television interviewer who stated that Ukrainians are very much concerned with the American November elections, sighed with relief when I tried to assure him that the American people while often not well informed in the area of foreign affairs are usually astute in recognizing a con-man and that Trump will most assuredly lose the popular vote, but the electoral system is somewhat tricky. Nevertheless, I offered my opinion that the American people are conscious of history and the election of a black Asian woman as president would be not only historic for America but overdue.
I remember watching the 2018 Helsinki Summit press conference. Aside from the pompadour and height difference, Trump and Putin were very much alike. Every time they opened their mouths, they lied. Current Republican Vice Presidential candidate J.D. Vance in 2015 compared Trump to Hitler. He has since remorsefully recanted for the sake of a political career. Senator, consider the similarities between Trump and Putin. Take your time. Granted Trump does not kill his political opponents, kidnap children, commit war crimes, perpetrate genocide. At least not yet. But, he really has not had the chance. Let’s not give it to him.
October 3, 2024