It wouldn’t have cost Trump anything to show a clear intent to deter in a strategically crucial moment; it wouldn’t even have undermined his efforts in Ukraine.
The economic liberalism that the world took for granted has given way to the White House’s attempt to gain sectarian control over institutions, as well as government intervention into private companies,
The erratic tariff policy pursued by the U.S. president and his administration has so far mainly served to strengthen ties between countries in the Global South and Beijing, and, where relevant, Moscow.