March 21, 2018
Donald Trump and the Art of Strategic Ambiguity
By keeping friends and foes alike off balance, he upholds the United States’ interests
Donald Trump has disturbed the world. His policy of strategic ambiguity has destabilized friends and foes alike. It has forced enemies such as North Korea to the bargaining table and made allies question the United States’ commitment to their security. For these reasons, ambiguity has been downplayed as a tool of U.S. diplomacy. It makes people uneasy, a feeling not embraced when dealing with global superpowers.
It is also true that anti-Trump sentiment among Western intelligentsia is so strong that few serious foreign-policy or national-security analysts are willing to openly examine the concerns his election highlighted or the success he is having in their sphere. Their belief in President Trump as a manifestation of ignorance or evil is so overwhelming that they are unable to perceive the heightened concerns and respect for the America’s position in the world that have emerged in centers of power in the Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, and African regions where China’s rise had, up until a year ago, appeared inevitable. So consumed are American and European practitioners of foreign policy with their Never/Anti-Trumpism that they have never stopped to consider that his approach is working.
Read the full article on National Review.
More from CNAS
-
Escalation Spiral? Fears of a 'Forever War' as Both Sides Dig In
Video
Becca Wasser, adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security joins CNN to discuss tactical success versus strategic success in the war in Iran and Iran's capa...
By Becca Wasser
-
The Ties That Bind
Commentary
Introduction U.S. policymakers have made the revitalization of the U.S. defense industrial base (DIB) a top national security priority and are directing considerable resources...
By Cara Abercrombie
-
How Low-Cost Drones Are Used in Modern Military Strikes
Podcast
There have been decades of attempts to make destructive drones, going back to World War I. The technology has advanced significantly since then. Drones now range in size from ...
By Stacie Pettyjohn
-
Reports
Defense / Indo-Pacific Security
U.S.-Japan-Philippines Trilateral CooperationExecutive Summary Growing challenges from the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC’s) massive military modernization, rapid technological advancement, and coercive military activ...
By Lisa Curtis & Ryan Claffey
