United States President Donald Trump was in the forefront of news from May 20 to May 26, 2017. His whirlwind trip took him to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Jerusalem and Bethleham, Israel, Rome, Italy, Brussels, Belgium and then to Sicily, Italy.
It started with Trump's address to a congregation of Muslim leaders in Riyadh, bilateral consultations with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) leadership and signing of various kinds of agreements related to defence, security, trade and investment. The next stop-over in Israel and West Bank was followed by a short meeting and exchange of views in Rome with Pope Francis in the Vatican and brief discussions with the Italian President and the Prime Minister. Then he went on to Brussels and met the King of Belgium and then had a short but frank discussion with the NATO leadership and a working lunch with the new French President Emmanuel Macron. Later he went on to Sicily where he participated in a meeting with the G-7 leadership and shared his observations about issues like security, trade and meaningful engagement.
Trump's first foreign foray was not only late but also stood in stark contrast to President Barack Obama's early trips to Canada, Britain, Germany and France. The trip was scheduled well before Trump's current travails over the firing of FBI Director James Comey and offered a welcome respite for his team.
The trip was orchestrated in a manner that would help Trump to show his differences with Obama's Middle East efforts. Making Saudi Arabia his first foreign stop was clearly designed to dispel the idea that Trump was anti-Muslim. Second, Trump did not skip Israel-as Obama did on his first Middle East trip. Indeed, he particularly underlined this chapter by visiting the Wall, meeting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, the Israeli leadership including Prime Minister Netanyahu and then delivering a major address at the Israel Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem. No US President has ever visited Israel this early in his term. Trump was also be the first sitting US President to visit the Western Wall.
The 'Trump Durbar' in Riyadh, formally dubbed as the "Arab-Islamic-America Summit" was participated by around 40-odd Muslim countries, including Bangladesh. They were there on the official invitation of King Salman of Saudi Arabia. It was particularly interesting to note that Iran and Syria - both flag-bearers of Shia Islam - were absent, not having received any invitation. This, in its own way highlighted the sectarian aspect that has been the source of so much conflict in the Middle East - in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Lebanon. This also underlined why the concept of security in Islamic nations has morphed and been affected by vicious violence and terrorism.
In his address to the Muslim leaders, Trump stressed that his goal was to create "a coalition of nations who share the aim of stamping out extremism" and providing a future full of hope. He reiterated that the USA was there "to offer partnership, based on shared interests and values". He noted that this future can only be achieved through "defeating terrorism and the ideology that drives it". For a change he used the politically correct expression ''Islamist terrorism" instead of "Islamic terrorism" and also acknowledged that "95 per cent of the victims of terrorism are themselves Muslim". He went on a rampage against the perpetrators of such violence by suggesting that this was a 'battle between good and evil' and that those involved in perpetrating terrorism or assisting it through financial subsidy should be driven "out of this earth".
Iran was singled out by Trump for giving terrorists "safe harbour, financial backing and the social standing needed for recruitment". Such a tirade was of course greatly appreciated by the different Arab countries and particularly by the Gulf Cooperation Council States. Quite understandably, it was followed by stern Iranian reaction.
The significant aspect of the Riyadh episode however appeared to be not the speech by Trump but the fact that the USA and Saudi Arabia ended up agreeing to invest almost US$ 400 billion in their two countries. Trump said this would create thousands of jobs in America and Saudi Arabia. This equation included an agreement whereby Saudi Arabia would make defence purchases worth US$ 110 billion from the USA. It was explained by Trump that this would enable the Saudi military forces to take a greater role in security operations. In other words, after having stoked the sectarian paradigm, the salesman had laid out a horizon that had the potential of more arms sales. For obvious reasons this course of action had the tacit approval of the Israeli leadership.
After Saudi Arabia President Trump arrived in Israel and had bilateral meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Banjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas (who was in Washington towards the beginning of May to pledge his support to a renewed peace process). Subsequent media reports however indicated that, according to Mouin Rabbani, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Institute for Palestine Studies, the USA did not have any concrete plan for a Palestine peace agreement. His assumption turned out to be true. It was clear from the visit that Trump, with a warmer relationship with Israel than previous US Presidents,has little influence in terms of stripping Israel of its preconditions to peace.
It was apparent that this time round Israel used the issue of negotiations as a facade and avoided commiting itself from any restraint with regard to its settlement expansion policies. It may be mentioned in this context that since Trump took office, Israel has authorised the construction of 3,000 additional illegal settlement homes and announced, for the first time in 20 years, the building of a new settlement in the occupied West Bank. The controversial new US Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, who took up his post in May, is known to be a strong supporter of settlements.
There was also no clarity with regard to the question as to whether the USA would eventually shift its Chancery from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. It may be mentioned here that though Israel claims Jerusalem as its capital, its jurisdiction over the city is internationally unrecognised. Under the 1947 United Nations Partition Plan, Jerusalem was meant to be internationally administered. In 1967, Israel illegally occupied the eastern half of Jerusalem, and in 1980, passed a law declaring it as the eternal and undivided capital of Israel.
Mr Trump is the first serving American president to visit the Western Wall in Jerusalem, the holiest prayer place of the Jews. That is being taken as support for Israel. It may be added here that the wall is in East Jerusalem, which Israel annexed after it was captured 50 years ago, is regarded by most of the world outside Israel as occupied land. In his final speech, at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem, President Trump identified himself, his administration and the United States four-square with Israel. He repeated, to lots of applause, that he would never let Iran have nuclear weapons although, according to security analysts, Israel has a substantial and officially undeclared nuclear arsenal.
After this Trump and his party left for Rome where he had a short 'cordial' meeting with Pope Francis in the Vatican. The Pope agreed with him about opposing abortion and also shared his concern about 'persecution' of Christians in the Middle East (followed soon after by the killing of 26 Egyptian Coptic Christians). Trump was also urged to be an instrument of peace, help solve the problem of migration and assist in mitigating the effects of climate change. There were, besides, courtesy meetings with the Italian President and the Italian Prime Minister.
After Rome Trump travelled to Brussels. In addition to having lunch with newly-elected French President Macron in the US Embassy, he also called on the King of Belgium and then separately spent time with the leaders of the NATO countries. As expected there were suggestions from Trump about NATO members increasing their share of contribution to the NATO effort and also advice that, they should do more to fight terrorism, training and mentoring troops in Afghanistan and equipping local forces in Iraq.
This was followed by his visit to Sicily, Italy where he attended a summit meeting of the G-7 countries. Their discussion (US, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan) was dominated by the issues of migration, terrorism and climate change. Trump let it be known that he had not decided yet whether or not to endorse the Paris agreement on reducing greenhouse emissions. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who was also in Sicily for the meeting, later told the BBC that the accord would survive regardless of Mr Trump's position. There was, however, some relief when Trump agreed to include in the final G-7 communique the pledge to fight protectionism and commit the USA to a rules-based international trade system..
Mr. Trump's efforts to put America first has left a long trail. There has not however been unanimity that this trip was a success. James P. Rubin, a former Assistant Secretary of State for President Bill Clinton, was quite critical. He observed that that "despite the highly staged events designed to pump up Trump's image, the new administration has done nothing on this trip to restore respect and admiration for US international leadership".
The writer, a former Ambassador and Chief Information Commissioner of the Information Commission, is an analyst specialised in foreign affairs, right to information and good governance.
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