A
t least, the "national security strategy" published on December 5 by Donald Trump's administration is clear – even in what it leaves unsaid. Notably absent is any mention of the menace of climate change, a subject now off-limits in Washington. More surprisingly, the issue of nuclear proliferation is barely addressed, and in the case of North Korea, it is almost entirely omitted.
The greatest difference from the approach taken by Trump's first administration in 2017 lies in its stance toward Russia and China, which were then accused of seeking "to undermine the security and prosperity of the United States." That is no longer the case today, nor is there any reference to the hybrid wars in which these powers excel. The "no-limits friendship" between the two countries, and strategic and military implications that go with it, are likewise glossed over, even though such developments should be of concern to Washington.
The document merely contemplates establishing "mutually beneficial trade relationships" with Beijing. As for Moscow, which the US administration considers a threat only in the eyes of Europeans, the priority is to "reestablish conditions of strategic stability" on the continent – even though such a goal ignores Russia's strategy of faits accomplis over the past two decades. The official repudiation of the international order once championed by Washington, an order based on democratic values and human rights, is the result of this strategic counter-revolution. This is regrettable, especially since it is hard to see how such repudiation will ultimately serve the interests of American citizens.
