{"id":28362,"date":"2017-02-18T19:11:19","date_gmt":"2017-02-19T03:11:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/?p=28362"},"modified":"2017-02-18T19:11:19","modified_gmt":"2017-02-19T03:11:19","slug":"trumps-foreign-policy-the-good-and-the-bad-in-his-first-30-days","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/2017\/02\/18\/trumps-foreign-policy-the-good-and-the-bad-in-his-first-30-days\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump&#8217;s Foreign Policy: The Good and the Bad in His First 30 Days"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Below are foreign policy highlights and lowlights from the first month of Donald Trump\u2019s presidency.<\/p>\n<p><b>THE GOOD<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Trump said: &#8220;<a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2017\/02\/16\/click-for-a-full-transcript-of-trumps-first-solo-press-conference.html\">Russia<\/a> \u2026 this is fake news put out by the media &#8230; I&#8217;m here today to tell you the whole Russian thing, that&#8217;s a ruse.&quot;<\/li>\n<li>&quot;It&#8217;s going to be impossible for [me] to ever get along with Russia because of all the pressure [I&#8217;ve] got with this fake story&quot;<\/li>\n<li>&quot;If we could get along with Russia \u2026 China and Japan and everyone \u2026 it would be a positive thing, not a negative thing&#8221;.<\/li>\n<li>&#8220;I say it\u2019s better to get along with <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.sbnation.com\/2017\/2\/5\/14516156\/donald-trump-interview-transcript-bill-oreilly-super-bowl-2017\">Russia<\/a> than not.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>When asked about Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was called a &#8220;killer&#8221; by the interviewer, Trump responded, &#8220;We\u2019ve got a lot of killers. What, do you think our country is so innocent?&#8230; take a look at what we\u2019ve done too.&quot;<br \/><!--more--><\/li>\n<li>&quot;We made a lot of mistakes. I\u2019ve been against the war in Iraq from the beginning \u2026 A lot of mistakes, but a lot of people were killed. A lot of killers around, believe me.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li><a HREF=\"https:\/\/www.rt.com\/news\/375431-putin-trump-call-expectations\/\">Russian<\/a> lawmakers &amp; economists optimistic after Putin-Trump call.<\/li>\n<li>Trump: &quot;They have sanctions on <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/world\/trump-talks-nato-obsolete-eu-a-dominator-brexit-smart-watch-out-bmw-20170115-gtrzwp.html\">Russia<\/a> &#8212; let\u2019s see if we can make some good deals with Russia &#8230; For one thing, I think nuclear weapons should be way down and reduced very substantially.&quot;<\/li>\n<li>NY Times Op-Ed: &#8220;Why Trump Is Right on <a HREF=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/02\/14\/opinion\/why-trump-is-right-on-russia.html?_r=0\">Russia<\/a>&#8220;.<\/li>\n<li>Secretary Tillerson fires much of the seventh-floor staff at the <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/state-dept-layoffs-under-rex-tillerson-being-carried-out\/\">State Department<\/a>. The seventh-floor was referred to as <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2016\/10\/17\/fbi-releases-100-new-pages-on-clinton-email-probe.html\">&#8220;the shadow government&#8221;<\/a> in an FBI release.<\/li>\n<li>Trump Nixes <a HREF=\"http:\/\/news.antiwar.com\/2017\/02\/10\/trump-nixes-elliott-abrams-for-state-dept-job\/\">Elliott Abrams<\/a> for State Dept. Job.<\/li>\n<li>Trump: &quot;The Israelis are going to have to show some flexibility [on <a HREF=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/post-politics\/wp\/2017\/02\/15\/trump-tells-netanyahu-to-hold-back-on-west-bank-settlements\/?utm_term=.0c06b0e296fa\">Palestine<\/a>], which is \u2026 hard to do&quot;.<\/li>\n<li>Regarding a one-state or two-state solution, Trump said, &quot;I want the one that both parties [Israel and Palestine] want.&quot;<\/li>\n<li>White House: New or expanded <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2017\/02\/02\/politics\/wh-new-or-expanded-settlements-may-not-be-helpful-in-achieving-peace\/\">Israeli<\/a> settlements &quot;may not be helpful&quot; in achieving peace.<\/li>\n<li><a HREF=\"https:\/\/sputniknews.com\/europe\/201701221049887960-serbia-clinton-trump-interventionism\/\">Belgrade<\/a> Breathes Easier as Trump&#8217;s Win Marks End to Clinton-Era Interventionism.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>THE BAD<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>US troops deploy to <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2017\/02\/17\/us\/us-troops-deploy-to-bulgaria-as-part-of-nato-operation-to-support-eastern-european-allies\/index.html\">Bulgaria<\/a> as part of NATO operation.<\/li>\n<li>Hundreds of US Troops, Tanks Arrive in <a HREF=\"https:\/\/sputniknews.com\/military\/201702141050683647-us-sends-hundreds-troops-tanks\/\">Romania<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Trump: &#8220;Crimea was TAKEN by <a HREF=\"https:\/\/mobile.twitter.com\/realDonaldTrump\/status\/831846101179314177?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">Russia<\/a> during the Obama Administration. Was Obama too soft on Russia?&#8221;<\/li>\n<li><a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.arabnews.com\/node\/1052441\/saudi-arabia\">Saudi<\/a> crown prince receives CIA honor for anti-terror efforts.<\/li>\n<li>US-led coalition air strikes killed 18 <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-afghanistan-casualties-idUSKBN15R0V4\">Afghan<\/a> civilians, U.N. says.<\/li>\n<li>US tanks, infantry fighting vehicles arrive in <a HREF=\"https:\/\/www.rt.com\/news\/376513-us-tanks-arrive-estonia\/\">Estonia<\/a> amid NATO buildup on Russian borders.<\/li>\n<li>US to Deploy Navy Destroyer Off <a HREF=\"http:\/\/news.antiwar.com\/2017\/02\/03\/us-to-deploy-navy-destroyer-off-yemen-coast-to-protect-waterways\/\">Yemen<\/a> Coast.<\/li>\n<li>Trump: &#8216;Nothing Off the Table&#8217; On <a HREF=\"https:\/\/sputniknews.com\/us\/201702021050290979-trump-nothing-off-the-table\/\">Iran<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>US sanctions <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-us-canada-38860352\">Iran<\/a> after missile test.<\/li>\n<li>Nikki Haley just delivered the Trump administration&#8217;s most hawkish words yet toward <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/trump-nikki-haley-russia-ukraine-2017-2\">Russia<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>Many Civilians Among the Dead After US Raid in <a HREF=\"https:\/\/sputniknews.com\/middleeast\/201701291050137458-many-civilians-dead-yemen-raid\/\">Yemen<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>President Trump said he believes that &#8220;<a HREF=\"http:\/\/thehill.com\/blogs\/blog-briefing-room\/news\/316175-trump-torture-works\">torture works<\/a>.&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>The first <a HREF=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/checkpoint\/wp\/2017\/01\/24\/trumps-first-arms-sales-holdovers-from-the-obama-era-are-business-as-usual\/?utm_term=.ead9f8e4177a\">arms sales<\/a> of the Trump administration: $1.85 billion to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Britain and Kenya (pending congressional approval).<\/li>\n<li>U.S., Coalition Continue Strikes Against ISIL in <a HREF=\"https:\/\/www.defense.gov\/News\/Article\/Article\/1056079\/us-coalition-continue-strikes-against-isil-in-syria-iraq\">Syria, Iraq<\/a>. <\/li>\n<li><a HREF=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2017\/jan\/24\/pentagon-chief-vows-unshakeable-commitment-to-nato\">NATO<\/a> has our &#8216;unshakable commitment&#8217;, Pentagon chief vows.<\/li>\n<li>US declines to send formal delegation to <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.independent.co.uk\/news\/world\/middle-east\/trump-has-decided-not-to-send-a-us-delegation-to-the-syria-talks-a7540516.html\">Syria<\/a> peace talks, citing timing issues; will instead send an ambassador.<\/li>\n<li><a HREF=\"http:\/\/news.antiwar.com\/2017\/01\/22\/yemen-reports-first-us-drone-strikes-under-trump\/\">Yemen<\/a> Reports First US Drone Strikes Under Trump &#8211; 10 Killed in Two Strikes.<\/li>\n<li>Donald Trump&#8217;s top team don&#8217;t all agree with him on <a HREF=\"http:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2017\/01\/13\/politics\/trump-russia-nominees-republicans-split\/index.html\">Russia<\/a>. <\/li>\n<li>Tillerson Wants to Provide Saudi Arabia With More Help to Bomb <a HREF=\"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/2017\/01\/12\/rex-tillerson-wants-to-provide-saudi-arabia-with-more-help-to-bomb-yemen\/\">Yemen<\/a>. <\/li>\n<li>Mattis: US Needs to Be Ready to \u2018Confront\u2019 <a HREF=\"http:\/\/news.antiwar.com\/2017\/01\/12\/mattis-us-needs-to-be-ready-to-confront-russia\/\">Russia<\/a>. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>NOTE: The information above is excerpted from the St. Pete for Peace <a HREF=\"https:\/\/www.stpete4peace.org\/trump\">fact sheet<\/a> on the Trump administration\u2019s foreign policy. The fact sheet will be updated throughout the Trump presidency.<\/p>\n<p><i>Chris Ernesto is cofounder of <a href=\"http:\/\/stpeteforpeace.org\/\">St. Pete for Peace<\/a>, an antiwar organization in St. Petersburg, FL that has been active since 2003. Mr. Ernesto also created and manages <a href=\"http:\/\/occupyarrests.com\/\">OccupyArrests.com<\/a> and <a href=\"http:\/\/usinafrica.com\/\">USinAfrica.com<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Below are foreign policy highlights and lowlights from the first month of Donald Trump\u2019s presidency. THE GOOD Trump said: &#8220;Russia \u2026 this is fake news put out by the media &#8230; I&#8217;m here today to tell you the whole Russian thing, that&#8217;s a ruse.&quot; &quot;It&#8217;s going to be impossible for [me] to ever get along [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":186,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-28362","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"meta_box":{"disable_donate_message":"","custom_donate_message":"","subtitle":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28362","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/186"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28362"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28362\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28365,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28362\/revisions\/28365"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28362"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28362"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28362"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.antiwar.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=28362"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}