Media: Trump stumbles in talks with China, Russia, EU

Despite his bold rhetoric, US President Donald Trump is facing setbacks in negotiations with some of the world’s most powerful players - Beijing, Moscow, and the EU are all pushing back, leaving the president struggling to assert his influence on the global stage. 

While Trump has successfully pressured some domestic institutions, including tech giants, universities, and the judiciary, his efforts to influence key global leaders have often fallen flat, Caliber.Az reports via CNN. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly defied US efforts to end the war in Ukraine, frequently ignoring and embarrassing Trump. Russian media now depicts Trump as a loudmouth who ultimately backs down without enforcing consequences. Similarly, Trump’s attempt to leverage a trade war against China’s Xi Jinping failed to bend Beijing to his will. 

US officials now express frustration over China’s failure to follow through on trade commitments, with one insider noting, “The one thing an authoritarian in Beijing can never do is bow down to a US president.” Trump’s tariff conflict with the European Union also ended in retreat. The Financial Times commentator Robert Armstrong famously coined the term “TACO trade” — “Trump Always Chickens Out” — capturing the president’s perceived pattern of wavering in tough negotiations. In the Middle East, expectations that Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would align closely have proven misplaced.

Despite Trump’s strong support during his first term, his recent peace-brokering efforts have been complicated by Netanyahu’s political need to prolong the Gaza conflict, much like Putin’s strategic stakes in Ukraine. Additionally, Trump’s pursuit of an Iranian nuclear deal has clashed with Israeli ambitions to use Iran’s moment of weakness to attack its nuclear facilities. Experts note that powerful world leaders pursue their own national interests on timelines and in ways that often diverge sharply from the transactional goals of US presidents. Personal appeals without clear reciprocal benefits are largely ineffective.

After Trump’s highly publicized attempts to humiliate Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, the allure of White House influence seems to be waning. Trump’s claims during last year’s campaign of a “very good relationship” with Putin and Xi — which he said would easily resolve complex geopolitical issues — echo a familiar pattern of presidential overconfidence.

George W. Bush famously said he had “got a sense of [Putin’s] soul,” while Barack Obama dismissed Russia as “the bored kid in the back of the classroom.” Both underestimations had lasting consequences. Looking at the broader picture, US presidents of the 21st century have consistently viewed themselves as men of destiny. Bush initially resisted becoming the world’s policeman but was compelled into wars in Afghanistan and Iraq after 9/11 — conflicts the US won militarily but struggled to stabilize politically. 

Obama sought to mend global tensions by calling for “a new beginning” in the Muslim world, banking on his charisma and unique background to foster change. Joe Biden entered office promising “America is back” following Trump’s tenure. Yet, four years later, partly due to his decision to seek reelection, the vision of America as a leading internationalist power appears diminished — and Trump has made a comeback. Trump’s “America First” approach rests on the notion that the US has been taken advantage of for decades, overlooking the fact that America’s alliances and global economic leadership made it the most powerful nation in history. 

By adopting a confrontational, strongman style, he risks squandering this legacy and eroding America’s soft power — its ability to influence through persuasion rather than coercion. Trump’s early presidency, marked by tariff threats, ambitions to expand US territory into Canada and Greenland, and steep cuts to global aid, revealed that international affairs involve multiple voices. So far, world leaders in China, Russia, Israel, Europe, and Canada appear to have calculated that Trump’s actual power is less than he imagines, that defying him carries minimal consequences, or that domestic political realities require resistance.

By Naila Huseynova