America’s not going to like it one bit if we have to go it alone in a dangerous world:
'China is the real winner': Trump's reversal in Ukraine aids Beijing, Western officials say
By embracing Russia and castigating Ukraine, President Donald Trump has rattled U.S. allies around the world, causing them to question if Washington is still a trusted partner.
Feb. 26, 2025, 5:55 PM CST
By Dan De Luce
In less than two weeks, President Donald Trump has upended America’s long-standing role in the world.
At the United Nations on Monday, in the same hall where U.S. diplomats for decades confronted their Russian counterparts on behalf of the “free world,” Washington’s envoy joined Moscow in voting against a resolution condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The vote followed a week in which Trump seemed to side with Russia against Ukraine, announcing plans to negotiate a peace deal without Ukraine at the table, and blaming Kyivfor starting the war that Russian President Vladimir Putin launched with a full-scale invasion three years ago.
Governments in Europe and democracies around the world are treating Trump’s actions and statements not as provocative posturing, but as an earthquake.
“This administration’s policies are a fundamental shift,” said James Bindenagel, a former senior U.S. diplomat who served for years in Germany.
After Trump’s move toward Russia, threats of tariffs against NATO allies and talk of acquiring Greenland, European and other democratic governments are adjusting to the reality that the U.S. can no longer be considered a trusted ally, current and former Western diplomats told NBC News.
An opportunity for China
With American reliability in doubt, some European nations and other countries may seek alternative partners and markets, possibly in China, Bindenagel said.
“The loss of trust in America creates a vacuum, and that vacuum is likely to be filled by cooperation between Moscow, Beijing, Pyongyang and Iran,” said Bindenagel, professor emeritus at the University of Bonn.
Trump’s shift away from Europe creates an opportunity for Beijing to try to draw Europe further into its orbit, he said, adding, “China is the real winner here.”
If the Trump administration continues to antagonize its partners and question its alliances, there is a risk that China — as well as Russia— could expand their spheres of influence in the Asia-Pacific region, Africa and Eastern Europe, experts said. In Asia, stunned officials in countries aligned with the United States are grappling with the implications of the apparent about-face in Washington, said Michael Green, chief executive officer of the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney.
