With the passing of each day, President Donald Trump is proving to be the finest international statesman America has produced since Ronald Reagan — and surely harking back to the American and world leaders who defended freedom during World War II.
Trump critics, hearing his 'America First' North Star guiding principle, accuse him of being an isolationist, uninterested in other parts of the world or the complexities of foreign relations. But Trump is proving them all to be very badly wrong.
In just the few weeks since his inauguration, he has negotiated border-closing and deportation policies with Mexico, Canada, Colombia, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and El Salvador.
He has focused, laser-like, on the Panama Canal and the importance of preventing China from running it. He is moving rapidly to prevent China from infiltrating Central and South America in violation of the Monroe Doctrine. And he has cast a sharp eye on the strategic value of Greenland to prevent Russia and China from advancing into the Arctic Circle.
Plus, he has directly engaged with Israel on the hostage release negotiations with the Hamas terrorists. He has offered an outside-the-box solution to the age-old Gaza problem.
And, now, he has finally broken through the Russia-Ukraine stalemate.
First, by meeting directly with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Then, this morning with an hour-long phone call to President Vladimir Putin of Russia.
In a lengthy Truth Social post, he laid out a brand-new U.S. strategy to end the war. In his own words:
Joe Biden never spoke to Putin since the war began. Not once. But Trump is clearly making good on his campaign promise to end the war, and he's doing it at his usual warp speed.
Again, in his own words:
Common sense has been a constant Trump theme — on the economy, with the DOGE audit of the out-of-control federal budget, on ending the radical left-wing culture, on closing the border, and cutting taxes.
And foreign policy must have a strong common-sense theme to it, too.
Again, in his own words, Trump laid out the strategy and the key American players:
This is a dramatic move by President Trump, not only to break the logjam of war, but to engage directly with the key players — Putin and Zelenskyy. And Mr. Trump is essentially orchestrating what will become a peace conference strategy, which will lead to cease-fire principles, and ultimately an end to the war.
Mr. Trump is essentially driving a process for all three sides -- the U.S., Russia, and Ukraine -- that will lead to an end to the violence and hostilities and the war. Mr. Trump’s actions are a breathtaking demarche. It is the most statesmanlike effort we have seen in generations.
Trump should’ve won a Nobel Peace prize for brokering the Abraham Accords during his term. What he’s doing now to end the seemingly intractable Russia-Ukraine war should earn him his second Nobel Prize.
But for him, it’s just promises made, promises kept.
