A trade war between the US and the rest of world

The US is imposing tariffs on aluminium and steel from the EU, Canada as well as Mexico. The EU, Canada and Mexico are unlike China, they are longstanding traditional American allies, so they are more likely to be angrier than China in terms of their respond to the US tariffs and they are.

Cecilia Malmstrom, European trade commissioner, said the EU “had closed the door on talks to partially liberalise parts of EU-US trade after the tariff exemption ran out” and further pointed out there would not be any negotiation when such threat is not removed from the table. The prime minister of Canada also has made a public speech to express his disappointment and anger. Mexico has been attacked by the US multiple times since Trump became the US president. China and Russia are the two powerful countries that have been seen as threats by the US for some years. They are treated unfairly or hostily by the US is not something surprising. However, it is surprising to see the US president has complimented the two countries’ leaders multiple times.

The US is changing its foreign policy. The currnet US president is turning against the rest of world, even some parties in his own country (such as Democratic Party). When the US is only fighting with one country, it is undefeatable, since it is powerful enough. Its GDP is more than twice as much as the Chinese GDP, its army is undoubtedly the world’s most powerful one. There is no single country that is capable of making the US suffer significant pain. Though the US has not been so successful at the Middle East issue as well as the North Korean nuclear issue, its position of the world’s most powerful country is unchangllened. However, when the US is fighting with so many countries at the same time, its undefeable position may be changed. One country cannot have such power to shake the US, but when there are so many, the situation can change.

To conclude, when the US believe that the world is owing it, it is going to fight with more countries and its undefeatable position will be turned and its global leadership will become weakened and actually is weakened already.