A New Order Is Emerging - Allies Losing Faith In Trumps America

𝘒𝘦𝘺 𝘜.𝘚. 𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘱 𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘏𝘰𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘰𝘶𝘣𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘳𝘦-𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘢 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘥𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.

𝗢𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻: Bruce Alpine.

U

S President Trump's second term has significantly strained relations with many traditional U.S. allies, leading to a notable erosion of trust in American foreign policy leadership. 

Recent polls and analyses from mid-2025 through early 2026 reveal a consistent pattern: majorities in key partner nations express low confidence in Trump's global approach. 

For example, Pew Research Center surveys in June 2025 showed that more than half of adults in 19 out of 24 countries surveyed lacked confidence in Trump's leadership on the world stage, with U.S. favorability declining sharply in Europe—dropping by nearly 13% from 2024 levels in several cases. 

A December 2025 POLITICO-Public First poll further highlighted this, with pluralities in Germany and France, and a majority in Canada, viewing the United States as a negative global force under Trump.

Similar sentiments appear in Asia, including South Korea and Japan, where concerns focus on trade unpredictability and security commitments. 

This diminished trust stems largely from the administration's actions and rhetoric, including tariff threats, skepticism toward NATO burden-sharing, and unilateral moves on issues like Arctic security and relations with Russia. 

Allies perceive these as departures from long-standing norms of consultation and mutual reliability, prompting hedging behaviors—such as strengthening alternative partnerships or reducing dependence on U.S. security guarantees. 

A key contributor to this erosion has been President Trump's verbal attacks on allies, often delivered in public speeches, interviews, and high-profile forums. 

These remarks have frequently been confrontational and dismissive. 

In his January 2026 Davos address at the World Economic Forum, Trump described European nations as "decaying" and their leaders as "weak," while criticizing the EU's structure as designed to disadvantage the United States. 

He has repeatedly questioned NATO allies' commitments, accusing them of freeloading and claiming they stayed "a little off the front lines" in conflicts like Afghanistan—a characterization that provoked strong rebukes from European leaders, veterans, families of fallen soldiers, and partners including the UK. 

Threats related to Greenland, including suggestions of military intervention, annexation, or imposing tariffs on European countries until a deal is reached, have further alarmed allies like Denmark and other NATO members. 

Such language has led to diplomatic protests, emergency ambassadorial meetings, and public commentary framing the U.S. as increasingly unpredictable or even "predatory." 

Critics argue that these verbal attacks undermine collective security by treating alliances transactionally or pejoratively—labeling partners as "freeloaders" or issuing threats against neighbors like Canada. 

Supporters, however, see them as blunt negotiation tactics aimed at securing fairer contributions in defense spending and trade. 

Regardless, the pattern has amplified perceptions of volatility in U.S. policy. Compounding these issues are growing allied concerns that American voters might elect a similar administration again in the future. 

Analysts and public discourse suggest allies now view Trump's policies not as anomalies of one term but as reflective of deeper shifts in U.S. politics, including isolationist or "America First" tendencies. 

This has fueled fears of long-term unreliability, encouraging diversification of alliances and reduced reliance on Washington. 

Repeated elections of Trump-like figures—twice already—make rebuilding trust difficult, potentially for a generation. 

Some express worry that the U.S. electorate's choices signal enduring unpredictability, prompting hedging strategies to mitigate risks.

Throughout history, superpowers have been undone by isolationist foreign policies combined with involvement in prolonged, unsustainable conflicts. 

The most recent example is the Soviet Union, whose over-extension helped bring about the end of the Cold War in December 1991. 

The United States may now be heading down a similar path, with such policy.

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