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Defense? Who needs defense when war is so much easier to spell? As few could have missed by now, the Trump administration has flipped the name of the Department of Defense back to the old Department of War. Hey, its really not such a big deal, though, is it? After all, who cares that name changes are going to have to be put in place at 700,000 facilities in all 50 states and 40 other countries (including those embossed napkins in military dining halls)? After all, in the Trump era, war at least couldnt be blunter.
At a time when so many countries seem to be defending themselves by turning their backs on Donald Trump and his tariffs, defense may indeed have become a dirty word in America. Take Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who, after the American president placed a 50% tariff on his countrys goods, promptly paid a well-staged visit to former foe China, suggesting that this world is being re-ordered before our very eyes. And Modi was hardly alone. Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un also visited China to watch a parade of that countrys latest, most advanced weaponry (including nuclear missiles) with its leader, Xi Jinping. And they were among the leaders of 26 (yes, 26!) countries then visiting China. Meanwhile, Europes NATO members, also hit by Trump tariffs and other acts, are increasingly struggling to deal with their once ultimate ally in Washington.
And then, of course, theres the planet all of those powers are now on, a world growing more extreme in weather terms (and in destructiveness) by the year, a world in which Donald Trumps government, pushing ever greater use of oil, natural gas, and coal (but not wind!), has no question about it! distinctly become a department of war (on nature).
And in that context, let TomDispatch regular Michael Klare, author of the aptly named book All Hell Breaking Loose, consider the numbers game among what still passes for the great powers on an ever less great planet. Tom
Back to 1984?
Trump's Strange Global Power Rankings
We're No. 1 and theyre No. 2 in the world.
That was President Trumps blunt assessment of global power politics when it came to the United States and Russia following his inconclusive summit meeting with Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15th. Of all his comments about the meeting, that numerical assessment made during a post-summit interview with Sean Hannity of Fox News was perhaps the most revealing, if also in some strange sense the hardest to decipher.
Supposedly, the intent of the Anchorage meeting was to arrange an immediate cease-fire in Ukraine and devise a path to lasting peace there none of which, of course, occurred. Instead, Trump appeared to focus on repairing U.S.-Russia relations, which had been in a deep freeze since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
I think the meeting was a 10, Trump exclaimed triumphantly after being asked by Hannity to rate the outcome of his talks with Putin. In the sense we got along great, and its good when two big powers get along, especially when theyre nuclear powers.Then came the observation that were No. 1 and theyre No. 2.
What Could Trump Have Meant by That?
Ostensibly, the comment suggests that Trump was anointing Russia as the second most powerful nation in the world after the United States. But while few would contest Americas status as the number-one world power, most analysts would certainly rank China as the worlds second most powerful nation, given its mammoth economy, expanding technological base, and growing military capacity. So, was this just a dig at China a crude way of denigrating its rise to superpower status? Maybe, but its likely that there was more to it than that.
As with so much Trump says in public, his comment appeared to be both a spontaneous outburst prompted by his chummy conversation with Putin and a reflection of his long-held understanding of global power politics. Speaking as if international relations were a competitive sport like baseball or football, where team rankings matter, he celebrated America and Russias status as the top two competitors.
But theres more that can be extracted from Trumps comment, including hints as to his preconceptions about the core constituents of national power and his strategy for perpetuating Americas status as No. 1.
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