Former German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer succinctly summarizes the effect that Donald Trump has had on global politics since taking office. From the Iran deal withdrawl, which Fischer characterizes as disastrous, to Israel, which is closer to a war with Iran in Syria than ever before, Fischer states unequivocally that Trump has managed to divide Europe and the United States and impacted foreign policy for the worse. Der Spiegel:
DER SPIEGEL: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that we can no longer truly rely on the U.S.
Fischer: It’s even worse than that. The American president is deliberately destroying the American world order. I was used to NATO being attacked by the left wing of the Green Party, but not by the American president! From an economic policy point of view, Trump is challenging Germany’s business model, which has been geared toward exports from the very beginning. Many are saying that we shouldn’t put up with that. I find this reaction understandable, but also kind of cute. What can we do? Given the current balance of power, sometimes all you can do is gnash your teeth..
DER SPIEGEL: You recently wrote a book in German with the dark title “The Descent of the West.” Is the West finished?
Fischer: There is every indication that this will happen. The West was the trans-Atlantic area, and its founding fathers were Britain and the United States. The West cannot survive without them, and certainly not with a weak, divided Europe. This is why Europeans must become stronger, much stronger. […]
DER SPIEGEL: You remember Bolton from your time as foreign minister.
Fischer: I know him very well. He is one of the people responsible for the Iraq disaster.
DER SPIEGEL: Bolton once wrote: “To stop Iran’s bomb, bomb Iran.”
Fischer: Bolton has only one answer to everything: bombing. I wouldn’t pay too much attention to that. But if Iran starts enriching uranium again, we would certainly be in a very dangerous situation. The confrontation between Iran and Israel has already begun militarily in Syria.
Choe Son Hui, the North Korean vice minister of foreign affairs, said North Korea could “make the U.S. taste an appalling tragedy it has neither experienced nor even imagined.” We already have. We have Donald Trump in the White House.
