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Trump's America First ideology symptomatic of a US in decline: Analyst

Thursday, 28 November 2019 10:49 AM [ Last Update: Thursday, 28 November 2019 10:58 AM ]

Dennis Etler

US President Donald Trump’s so-called America first policy underscores the diminishing power of America’s diplomatic, economic and military power, as China challenges US for global dominance, says an academic and political analyst in California.

“Trump's America First ideology is symptomatic of the US in decline. Without saying so, it acknowledges that the US, in the words of former President Jimmy Carter, is in a state of malaise,” said Dennis Etler, a former professor of Anthropology at Cabrillo College in Aptos, California.

“Trump, by becoming a cheerleader for America's "greatness," is merely covering up its retreat from the world stage. His bluff and bravado belie the realization that the US no longer has the will, nor resources to bully the world unimpeded,” Etler told Press TV on Wednesday.

“By reverting to unilateralism Trump is conceding the future to China which is methodically expanding its influence and extending its reach across the globe through trade and developmental assistance,” he added.

For the first time, China has more diplomatic missions around the world than the United States, according to a study published Wednesday that offered fresh evidence of Beijing's global ambitions.

Australia's respected Lowy Institute reported that China's "rapid" rise up the rankings of diplomatic networks continued in 2019, boosted by the opening of diplomatic posts in countries that had previously recognized Taiwan.

In results likely to be read as a bellwether for geopolitical shifts, the think tank said US diplomacy had "entered a period of limbo," with Trump's budget cuts and troubles retaining career diplomats.

China diplomatically overtakes a declining US: Study

For the first time, China has more diplomatic missions around the world than the United States, says a respected think tank.

The United States opened no new posts and was forced to shutter its consulate in Saint Petersburg — amid tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions following the alleged poisoning of Russian ex-spy Sergei Skripal in Britain.

At the same time, Beijing's footprint continued to grow, with new missions popping up in "Burkina Faso, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, the Gambia, and Sao Tome, and Principe — all former diplomatic friends of Taipei."

“US missions abroad have traditionally been a hotbed of subversion and sedition fomented by its spy networks and support for proxy NGOs which promote its agenda of creating opposition forces subservient to US interests,” Etler said.

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