He campaigned on getting the United States out of the business of proliferating foreign wars. He even promised to strive for an accommodating relationship with nuclear-armed Russia. In formulating his political platform he rejected an amendment that would authorize sending lethal weaponry to Ukraine -- an act that would only stoke tensions.
But once in office President Trump did little about the foreign wars, he pushed the relationship with Russia close to the brink, and even sent lethal weaponry to Ukraine. It seems that Washington has once again changed another president.
So now the "bitter partisanship" that candidate Obama bemoaned has grown. The Washington establishment has thwarted President Trump's aspirations. Coupled with great civil unrest, this all looks to us like political instability.
If it were not for your nuclear weapons these would be largely your problems alone. But when you add in your nuclear arsenal, all this instability adds up to a global threat.
I'm sure that few Americans are thinking of their country as an out-of-control international menace. It is probably easier to believe that Russia would be in that position. But I must tell you that today Russia looks like a far more stable and predictable country than the United States.
For a long time the vast nuclear weaponry of the United States and Russia has seemed to be in stable hands. But, the United States is now refusing to continue with treaties and safeguards that have in the past acted as reassurances. This speaks directly to the danger posed by the United States.
Some prominent Americans recognize the threat and have talked about it vociferously. One such is Sam Nunn. He served in the US Senate for 25 years and for many years was chairman of its Armed Services Committee. In 2001 Nunn and CNN founder Ted Turner formed an organization called the Nuclear Threat Initiative. It aims to reduce the risk of global nuclear catastrophe.
A 2019 article authored by Nunn and NTI colleague Ernest Moniz in Foreign Affairs magazine sets out the danger plainly: "The United States and Russia are now in a state of strategic instability; an accident or mishap could set off a cataclysm."
The article offers a powerful scenario for how tensions in Europe could quickly devolve into nuclear war. I can think of a couple more myself. The trigger point could involve further nuclearization efforts in North Korea or Iran.
Viewing current events, a picture of political instability and civil unrest in the US is becoming increasingly clear. As a result, America's nuclear threat to the world is also becoming increasingly clear.
Lamentably the prospects for an American political solution for the perceived threat do not seem good. I find it hard to imagine how either presidential candidate will be able to make a difference.
President Trump first came to office with an air of unpopularity. Before the election, Newsweek reported: "Voters rate Trump worse than any other presidential candidate in Gallup's records..." After the election many voters were in disbelief that he could have won. They expected Mrs. Clinton to win. The new president's political enemies went on to wage a relentless campaign to discredit him further. His most internationally strategic campaign promises went unfulfilled. I see from American news commentaries that many Americans detest his personality and don't trust him. That leaves him with a considerable challenge to his leadership.
His opponent, former vice-president Joseph Biden, offers a problematic alternative. Many label Biden's malapropisms and spoonerisms, and his sometime outlandish statements, simply as verbal gaffes. More troubling, though, is the realization that his muddled speech can only be reflective of muddled thinking. Frankly, he appears to be entering into a pattern of cognitive decline. That will put him in a position to be led by others rather than providing strong leadership himself. And who knows who will be pulling the strings?
As a Swiss citizen it is not for me to be prescriptive about how the US should address this matter. But I hope that by providing this glimpse of how things are looking to me from abroad it will help Americans in their deliberations.
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