Updated February 25, 2025 at 12:57 PM ET
President Trump is quickly scaling back decades of U.S. foreign policy by alienating long time allies, particularly those in Europe.
The president has repeatedly criticized NATO and has seemingly sided with Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, the largest attack on a European country since World War II.
Beyond Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump has sought to align himself with other similar leaders far less favorable to democracy, and who have assumed more and more power for themselves.
Morning Edition is exploring the repercussions of America's foreign policy reversals and realignments under President Trump with different writers, analysts and leaders.
Stephen Walt, the Robert and Renee Belfer Professor of International Affairs at Harvard University, told Morning Edition that this is because Trump's worldview aligns much more with those kinds of leaders.
Walt, who has long been critical of U.S. over commitment overseas, doesn't see Trump's actions and his pulling back from the old world order as being beneficial to the U.S. in the long run.
Here are three thoughts he shared with Morning Edition's Leila Fadel about the Trump approach to global politics:
Why Trump is more comfortable among the ranks of autocratic leaders
Trump is an ardent nationalist and not an isolationist, Walt said, noting that he's much more comfortable with autocratic leaders than with leaders of liberal democracies, pointing to the president's relationships with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, as well as Mohammed bin Salman, crown prince of Saudi Arabia.
"And I think in Trump's mind, a perfect world would be one where powerful leaders can get together and cut deals and then impose them on others without paying too much attention to the rule of law," Walt said. "That's the kind of world he likes. And that's why Trump and his administration would like to move other parts of the world, parts that are sort of reliably democratic in a more illiberal direction."
Trump's not practicing good negotiation tactics in trying to end Russia-Ukraine war
Bringing the war in Ukraine to an end makes good sense, Walt said. But how to do it in a responsible, disciplined way that ensures Ukraine's sovereignty and security matters.
Right now, Walt said, that's not where things are headed.
"Unfortunately, what the Trump administration appears to be doing so far is, blaming Ukraine for the conflict, which is absurd, and giving Russia most of what it wants before the negotiations really begin," Walt said. "This is just not good negotiating tactics and is likely to produce an outcome that's much more in Russia's favor than it needed to be."
Europe should become more responsible for its own defense, but it should be gradual
Walt said "there's no question" Europe should be more responsible for its own defense and the United States should be shifting its attention and resources elsewhere. But he notes that it should be done over a period of five to 10 years, so Europe can develop its own security institutions and build up its forces.
This is key, he said, so that the U.S. can count on their diplomatic support and cooperate with Europe when unexpected events happen.
Trump appears to be "burning up the alliance," Walt said, adding that this approach is likely to "destroy" relationships that the U.S. could benefit from in the future.
"We're going to be giving them the incentives to start forming coalitions against us and also reaching out to other countries elsewhere around the world, because they're going to need help to keep the United States in check," Walt said.
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