Trumpism is a far-right American political ideology that has been observed for over a decade within international relations on the global stage. This ideology has developed over several decades, drawing support primarily from church-based white American communities. Trumpism reflects a worldview in which church-based white Americans are positioned as dominant, combining elements of American ethnonationalism, religion, and racial identity. The term “Trumpism” gained prominence after Donald Trump assumed office as President of the United States. However, this ideology is not novel; rather, it has long been latent within American political history. Especially, it is deeply rooted in the Jacksonian school of foreign policy in the USA.
The recent attack on the state of Venezuela by the United States has revived the discussion again in the global sphere. After the operation, President of the United States Donald Trump has clearly said that the United States will be responsible to rule Venezuela. Besides the attack on Venezuela, in the past, Trumpism, which is headed by Donald Trump, has threatened Canada to join the United States as one of the American states, cautioned Denmark to leave Greenland for the United States, as well as warned Panama to leave the Panama Canal to the United States. These attacks and cautions categorically recount that Trumpism is not a matter of American domestic politics and law, but also a matter of global politics and law, since Trumpism affects the global political community around the world. Based on these incidents and cautions, not only victim states and economically categorized states, but all politically sovereign societies must unite and fight against Trumpism to save the rules-based international order by strengthening international institutions to take relevant stringent actions.
Let me start with the America–Venezuela conflict from the doctrine of Trumpism. As I already mentioned earlier, Trumpism did not come into existence with President Donald Trump, but is latent in American history. In the past decades, the world has experienced plenty of international wrongful acts committed by the United States against weaker states. Recently, the United States has attacked Venezuela with its military forces and captured President Maduro. As a student and scholar of international law, I can mention that it is absolutely regarded as a grave violation of international law. In the United Nations Charter, Article 2(4) arguably prohibits the use of force against the territorial integrity and political independence of any member of the United Nations. As per this prohibition, no state can be allowed to enter into another state’s territory and conduct operations. We can here simply observe that the United States has completely violated the fundamental principle of international law that protects the absolute sovereignty of states. But it cannot be seen only as the violation of international legal obligations imposed by the UN Charter; it can be seen as Trumpism, which has been repeatedly attacking the sovereignty of states after the Second World War, since Trumpism seeks global dominance to reach its political and economic goals by authoritarian actions.
Indeed, Trumpism carries plenty of historical parallels with the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, when the United States had unequivocally sought American expansionism for acquiring territory across the continent of North America. The history of the eighteenth century had witnessed words spoken by President William McKinley that “the increase of American territory has added vastly to our strength and prosperity.” In the 21st century, U.S. President Trump seeks American expansionism into the Western Hemisphere and the rest of the globe by reclaiming the Panama Canal, occupying Greenland, which is a territory of Denmark, and pursuing Canada for exploiting natural resources, besides geographical dominance against non-Western powers.
Trumpism has taken explicit steps that violate international doctrines and principles underpinning the liberal international order. The Republican Party in the United States has sought to ensure the long-term survival of Trumpism in pursuit of national economic ambitions and geopolitical advantages. Most importantly, as noted above, the Trump administration pursued policies characterized by expansionism, exceptionalism, and exploitation. As a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, the Trump-led United States exhibited imperial ambitions, seeking to achieve its objectives through dominance and the use of force, both of which are prohibited under the United Nations Charter. Most remarkably, the global community must remain united in responding to Trump’s actions in order to protect international peace and security. It is a universal responsibility of global intellectual communities to oppose the inhumane, illegal, and illiberal commitments associated with Trumpism, which pose threats and intimidation to global peace. Historically, latent patterns of violence and exploitation in U.S. policy have been experienced primarily by the Global South; however, Trumpism extended such tendencies westward, notably through its focus on the territory of Greenland.
In light of these developments, the global community should critically engage with Trumpism to prevent the potential escalation of global conflict, which could arise from its illiberal actions.
