Diplomatist Magazine Diplomatist July 2018 | Page 3

Publisher’s Note
Welcome to the July edition of Diplomatist!
The United States has, for most of the twentieth and all of the
twenty-fi rst century, been a vanguard of the liberal world order,
promoting rule of law, democracy and respect for human rights in
countries across the world through both diplomatic and military
means. However, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the
America of today is not the America of yesterday. The former leader
of the international regime established after the end of the Second
World War has now turned within. The fact that Donald Trump, the
newly elected President of the United States, is at the centre of this
shift is not surprising. His 'Make America Great Again' campaign
rhetoric was hard to miss. In the year and a half since he came into
offi ce, President Trump has overseen America's retreat from global
leadership on a host of key issues, as he works to resurrect a narrow
defi nition of national sovereignty that harks back to America's
isolationist position in the early twentieth century. Our cover stories
- 'The New U.S. Protectionism and the Danger of a Global Trade
War' and 'The United States Turns Within' - examine the micro-
and macro-scopic consequences of the United States' break from
tradition and the fracturing of its relations with its long-term allies
in the spheres of trade and global politics.
Another matter of controversy with regard to the Trump
administration has emanated from its relations with Russian
President Vladimir Putin. Following his combative appearances
at the recently concluded G-7 and NATO summits, Trump was
all smiles at his summit meet with President Putin in Helsinki on
July 16. Putin, on his part, was fresh from his country's successful
organising of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Over the course of the
month and a half long tournament, Russia was able to present a
renewed image of itself to the world by virtue of its status as host
nation, as highlighted in our Culture Connect feature story 'Hosting
the FIFA World Cup: Soft Power Diplomacy at its Best'.
With international politics witnessing a sea of change, we examine
India's changing role in an increasingly fragmented world in our
story 'India in a Multi-polar World'.
In another part of the world - the Middle East, confl icts continue
to rage. Amidst the chaos of all the fi ghting, Turkey has managed
to emerge as a formidable actor in the region. Over the course of
the last two years, the Turkey has made inroads into northern Syria
and is actively involved in negotiating a political settlement to the
Syrian confl ict, along with Russia. Turkey's rise as a dominant player
in the region has been, in large part, due to the rhetoric and actions
of its hardline leader - President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In the last
year, Erdogan has successfully managed to consolidate his hold
on power within the country, both through his successful motion
for constitutional reform which granted him sweeping powers as
President as well as his recent re-election into offi ce. We examine
the consequences of the same, both for Turkey and the wider region,
in our story 'Turkey: One Man, One Rule'.
In our Africa Diary section, we highlight the recent developments
on the African continent, including the historic move towards peace
being made between Ethiopia and Eritrea.
In this edition, we also have a special supplement on Peru-India
Relations, featuring brief reports on the history of the long-standing
diplomatic and economic relationship between the two countries, in
honour of the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic
relations between India and Peru.
We hope you enjoy this special coverage as well as our in-depth
stories and reports in this edition. As always, we welcome your
feedback and comments.
Linda Brady Hawke
Publisher