By N. GUNASKARAN
Rhetoric such as “Make America Great Again,” frequently declared by President-elect Donald Trump, reflects the global political, economic and defense policies of the new US administration. The new dispensation would not be different from earlier US administrations as far as the interests of the global South, including Asian nations, are concerned.
The big US corporations would continue to extract huge profits through subordination of Asian economies in line with the US economic interests. There would be continued pressure from the international financial institutions like IMF to further open the economies of Asian countries to serve the the global finance capital headed by the US. Moreover, the military encirclement of many Asian regions by the US will continue to endanger the peace and security of Asia.
Trump’s threats to levy blanket tariffs of 20% on imports from all countries and up to 60% on goods from China would certainly result in adverse impact on Asia’s leading exporters to the US, including Japan, China, Vietnam, Malaysia and South Korea. It would hit all sectors, including manufacturing, and have a negative impact on already shrinking employment opportunities in Asian countries.
The foreign policy of Trump’s new administration towards Asia would be simply based on further safeguarding the interests of US corporations in Asia. Many US corporate giants, such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft, are doing big business in the Asian region utilizing the vast pool of cheap labor available in the Asian countries. US capital projects such as Microsoft with a $2 billion investment in Malaysia and Amazon committing $9 billion in Singapore are currently underway.
Trump warned the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) not to create a new currency as an alternative to using the dollar. He threatened to levy a 100% tariff if they did. The BRICS countries are experiencing numerous difficulties in depending upon the US dollar which dominates global trade and finance. A common currency could simplify and facilitate trade among BRICS countries.
Global financial risks and aggressive US foreign policies are threatening the economic progress of all Third World countries including BRICS countries.And, they have to find ways to save their own economic interests and avoid dollar-related risks.So they are discussing an alternative currency and that initiative is still in the discussion stage. Trump’s warning to BRICS countries clearly indicated that economic sovereignty of Third World countries would continue to be under threat from the US dominance in the world economy and the dollar hegemony.
Military alliances led by the US in the Asian region would continue under the Trump administration also. Trump and US President Joe Biden have consensus on Indo-Pacific strategies. President Donald Trump would push for his “America First” geopolitics. The US security allies in the Indo-Pacific — Australia, Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand — would be forced to cope with the continuance of the strategic defense policies under the Trump administration.
Like his first term in office, in 2019, Trump and his team will maintain and strengthen alliances and partnerships to counter China. In late November, during the security conference of the ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting-Plus, the Defense ministers from US allies Japan, the Philippines, South Korea and Australia met on the sidelines of the conference and held talks to strengthen their military ties.
The Biden administration maintained and tried to strengthen the alliance, called, AUKUS (Australia-U.K.-U.S.) in 2021 by clinching a security deal, which paved the dangerous course for the joint production of nuclear-powered submarines and joint basing and advanced research into quantum computing and hypersonic technologies. The US administration would further push these deals in the name of countering China.
Though there is widespread speculation about the changes in the US policies towards Taiwan, the continuity of the policies established under the first Trump Administration and the Biden Administration would be followed. U.S. military aid and funding for Taiwan would further escalate tensions between China and Taiwan, endangering the security of the region.
It is well known that for a long time the military alliances led by the US in Asia have been the bigger security threats in the Asian region, continuing the arms race and increasing militasry budgets of the poor countries at the expense of the spending for the welfare of the people.
Undoubtedly, Trump’s second presidential term would bring mutually conflicting policies which would adversely affect the economic stability, peace and security of Asia. Institutionalized collective action, along with strengthening of domestic manufacturing capabilities and investing in domestic resources, such as human capital and infrastructure, would be the way out for Asian countries and their people.
N. Gunasekaran is a political activist and writer based in Chennai, India.
From The Progressive Populist, January 1-15, 2025
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