Diplomatist Magazine Diplomatist July 2018 | Page 33

GLOBAL CENTRE STAGE
decay…From this moment on, it will be America First." 2
He emphasised the need for ‘protection’ from other nations
that were stealing American products, jobs and companies.
He stated that that it was alright for nations to put their
nations fi rst. It was the policy of the Trump Administration
to focus on and put the interest of America fi rst. Thus, his
actions in the one year that he has been in power are largely
an implementation of the foreign-political, economic and
security policy that he wanted for the United States.
If one looks at a snapshot of the agreements that the United
States has withdrawn from in the past one year, it becomes
clear that President Trump has decided to follow a path that is
no longer possible as the very nature of international politics
has changed in the last few decades.
(i) The Trans-Pacifi c Partnership (TPP)
On January 23, 2017, President Trump directed the Offi ce
of the United States Trade Representative to withdraw from
the TPP. The TPP was a 12 member economic partnership that
had been proposed by President Obama and his administration
in an effort to counter China’s growing economic interests
in Asia. In justifying his decision, President Trump stated
that the TPP was not in the interest of American businesses
and that it would balloon the already substantial trade defi cit
that America has, and would not benefi t American industries.
Instead, he preferred to negotiate with individual countries
on a ‘one on one’ basis. In March 2018, the new and revised
TPP, called the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement
for Trans-Pacifi c Partnership (CPTPP), was signed by the
remaining members. When President Obama was advocating
the agreement, he had said that “America should call the
shots” instead of China. Today, however, instead of America
calling the shots, it is Japan that has been instrumental in
ensuring that the agreement continues on. What is of further
interest is that Chinese offi cials are looking at the possibility
of signing into the agreement. China is positioning itself as a
champion of globalisation and a more integrated economic
system, a leadership position that has thus far been taken by the
United States. Today, the CPTPP is opposing the protectionist
policies advocated by the Trump Administration. However,
the new agreement is weaker than its earlier iteration due to
the absence of one of the most powerful economies in the
President Donald Trump holds up the executive order on withdrawal from the Trans Pacifi c Partnership
after signing it in the Oval Offi ce of the White House in Washington on Jan 23, 2017.
Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Diplomatist • Vol 6 • Issue 7 • July 2018, Noida • 33