Global Politics

Photo Source:
   NIAS Course on Global Politics
National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS)
Indian Institute of Science Campus, Bangalore
For any further information or to subscribe to GP alerts send an email to subachandran@nias.res.in

CWA # 28, 24 June 2018
Global Politics
G7: Why Trump wants Russia in?

  Miti Shah

Trump's suggestion to reinstate Russia to the trade group despite knowing that all the allies strongly oppose it was highly frowned upon. Why then is Trump taking such risks for Russia at the cost of increasing the divide between the USA and its strongest allies?

School of Liberal Studies, PDPU, Gandhinagar & Research Intern, National Institute of Advanced Studies, IISc (Bengaluru)

Among the many disagreements of President Trump with the G7 at the recent summit, the US President fought a battle on behalf of Russia with some of the strongest allies.

His suggestion to reinstate Russia to the trade group despite knowing that all the allies strongly oppose it was highly frowned upon. Why then is Trump taking such risks for Russia at the cost of increasing the divide between the USA and its strongest allies?

Trump and Putin: Similar traits

Trump’s admiration of Vladimir Putin dates back to 2007, a long time before his presidential elections, when in an interview on CNN with Larry King, Trump exclaimed, “Look at Putin – what he’s doing with Russia…whether you like him or don’t like him – he’s doing a great job in rebuilding the image of Russia and also rebuilding Russia period.” Later, in 2013, began a streak of Trump’s tweets that indicated his wish to build a strong bond with Putin. He speculated the Russian President’s attendance at his beauty pageant in Moscow saying that if he does attend it: “Will he become my new best friend?”

Both these leaders have mutually appreciated each other’s working styles and show some common traits in their working patterns. Both are right-wing nationalists and believe staunchly in prioritizing their national interest over other matters. Both believe that their country was in a bad shape and it is only them who can save it. Whether it be Trump’s constant criticism of the previous government, or the make America great again campaign or Putin’s belief that he is the only saviour of Russia: a country that is on the brink of catastrophe at the moment. Putin believes that if he steps away, the state will fall apart.

Hence, be it Russia’s annexation of Crimea or Trump’s idea to build a wall between US and Mexico, both these leaders are similar in their constant efforts to design their domestic and foreign policies to prioritize their national security and further their national interest over other concerns.

Both these leaders have tried to build an image that redefines leadership. They both want to portray themselves as fierce and strong headed. As someone who is not afraid to break the conventions and take necessary steps to achieve their national interests. For Putin, this friendship also helps to regain Russia’s status as a powerful country. However, Trump, despite knowing this is comfortable in helping Russia.

In a continuum of their appraisals for another, Putin has also reverted by being extremely supportive of Trump’s actions. Once, he said, “He (Trump) is a very colourful and talented man, no doubt about that.”

These leaders have thus begun a new wave of US-Russia relations.

Economic benefits for the Trumps

Apart from both the leaders common ideologies, genuine fondness of the one another and similar goals, it is believed that Trump has business ties with Russia. These ties have been established long before Trump’s presidential campaign.

There are also allegations of Russian intervention in the last US presidential elections to help the results to be in favour of Trump. A special investigation team has been established to prove these connections. Their reports suggest that there is some economic transaction between Donald Trump and some oligarchs of Russia who might have interfered in the elections in exchange of stronger Russia-US bond.

This can be incurred from their reports:

  • Trump’s partners in the Trump Soho project in New York, announced in 2006, including a former official of the Soviet Union and a Russian who confessed to felony fraud involving organized crime.
  • Son Donald Trump Jr. said two years later that money was "pouring in from Russia" for "high-end product."
  • The same year, a Russian oligarch paid Trump $95 million for a Florida mansion the elder Trump bought in 2004 for less than half that price.
  • He made Paul Manafort his campaign chief. A Trump Tower resident since 2006, Manafort had received tens of millions of dollars from Putin allies in Ukraine.
  • He made Michael Flynn his national security advisor. In November 2015, Flynn got $45,000 from a Russian propaganda arm to attend a dinner with Putin.
  • He picked as foreign policy advisers Carter Page — identified years earlier by U.S. officials as a potential Russian spy – and a little-known 30-year-old named George Papadopoulos.
  • Donald Trump Jr. arranged a meeting at Trump Tower to explore a Russian offer of damaging information on Clinton. His brother-in-law, Jared Kushner, and Manafort also attended that meeting in early June 2016.
  • Democratic Party emails — stolen by Russian operatives, according to U.S. intelligence officials — were released by front groups later that month. Then, in July, candidate Trump publicly asked Moscow for more dirt.

 

USA and the allies

Trump left the Paris climate accord, walked out of the Iran deal, recognized Jerusalem as a part of Israel, disagreed with the negotiations at the G7 summit and was ready to look over Russia’s annexation of Crimea. These moves have led to a rift between the USA and its allies since it involves high stakes for the European Union.

When Donald Trump refused to sign the G7 agreement, he lashed EU states for treating the US like “a piggy bank that everybody’s robbing”. With all of this, President Trump also remarked that, "Russia should be in this meeting. They should let Russia come back in, because we should have Russia at the negotiating table." He added that it was the ex-president Barack Obama’s fault to not handle the case of Russia’s annexation of Crimea in a better way. However, he believes that having Russia back in the trade group would benefit Russia, US, and all the member countries.

 He also targeted Canada in particular, claiming that it was being unfair to the US. The president of the European Commission defended the Canadian prime minister against attacks by Donald Trump, who described him as “dishonest” and “weak”.

Responding to Trump’s remarks, about Canada the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said that, “Canadians are polite and reasonable, but we will also not be pushed around,” indicating that it will not give in to the US pressure.

The EU spokesperson said that EU would “continue to stand up for an international rules-based, multilateral system”. He added: “For us, Pacta sunt servanda” – a Latin phrase meaning “deals must be respected” – as a reference to Mr. Trump’s reneging on the leaders’ communiqué.

Print Bookmark

PREVIOUS COMMENTS

NIAS Global Politics Database
March 2024 | CWA # 1251

NIAS Africa Team

Africa This Week
NIAS Global Politics Database
February 2024 | CWA # 1226

NIAS Africa Team

Africa This Week
The World This Year
December 2023 | CWA # 1189

Hoimi Mukherjee | Hoimi Mukherjee is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Political Science in Bankura Zilla Saradamani Mahila Mahavidyapith.

Chile in 2023: Crises of Constitutionality
The World This Year
December 2023 | CWA # 1187

Aprajita Kashyap | Aprajita Kashyap is a faculty of Latin American Studies, School of International Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru University New Delhi.

Haiti in 2023: The Humanitarian Crisis
The World This Year
December 2023 | CWA # 1185

Binod Khanal | Binod Khanal is a Doctoral candidate at the Centre for European Studies, School of International Studies, JNU, New Delhi.

The Baltic: Energy, Russia, NATO and China
The World This Year
December 2023 | CWA # 1183

Padmashree Anandhan | Padmashree Anandhan is a Research Associate at the School of Conflict and Security Studies, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangaluru.

Germany in 2023: Defence, Economy and Energy Triangle
The World This Year
December 2023 | CWA # 1178

​​​​​​​Ashok Alex Luke | Ashok Alex Luke is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Political Science at CMS College, Kottayam.

China and South Asia in 2023: Advantage Beijing?
The World This Year
December 2023 | CWA # 1177

Annem Naga Bindhu Madhuri | Annem Naga Bindhu Madhuri is a postgraduate student at the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies at the University of Madras, Chennai.

China and East Asia
The War in Ukraine
October 2023 | CWA # 1091

Annem Naga Bindhu Madhuri

Issues for Europe
IPRI Quarterly Forecasts I Triggers, Trends, and Trajectories
July 2023 | CWA # 1012

Bibhu Prasad Routray

Myanmar continues to burn
2022: The World This Year
December 2022 | CWA # 879

Padmashree Anandhan

The Ukraine War
Europe: Heatwaves, Wildfires, Droughts, and Ice Melt in Alps
November 2022 | CWA # 838

Rishma Banerjee

Tracing Europe's droughts
NIAS Africa Weekly
March 2022 | CWA # 705

NIAS Africa Team

In Focus: Libya
The World This Week: 150th Issue
December 2021 | CWA # 630

GP Team

Europe in 2021
Pakistan Reader
October 2021 | CWA # 588

Abigail Miriam Fernandez

TLP is back again
NIAS Fortnightly on Science, Technology & International Relations
August 2021 | CWA # 528

STIR Team

Space Tourism
Science, Technology and International Relations
September 2019 | CWA # 162

Lakshman Chakravarthy N

5G: A Primer
South Asia Monthly Brief (Nov 2018)
December 2018 | CWA # 71

Mahesh Bhatta | Centre for South Asian Studies, Kathmandu

Nepal
South Asia Monthly Brief (Nov 2018)
December 2018 | CWA # 70

Nasima Khatoon | Research Associate, ISSSP, NIAS

The Maldives
South Asia Monthly Brief (Nov 2018)
December 2018 | CWA # 69

Harini Madhusudan | Research Associate, ISSSP, NIAS

India
South Asia Monthly Brief (Nov 2018)
December 2018 | CWA # 68

Sourina Bej | Research Associate, ISSSP, NIAS

Bangladesh
South Asia Monthly Brief (Nov 2018)
December 2018 | CWA # 67

Seetha Lakshmi Dinesh Iyer | Research Associate, ISSSP, NIAS

Afghanistan