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Gideon Rachman

This Month

MAGA

Why the MAGA faithful could bring down Trump

The president is entering new and dangerous territory as he pushes ahead with inflation-raising tariffs that could hit US consumers.

King Charles hosts Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at Sandringham Estate.

How Zelensky can win without Trump’s help

With Europe’s backing, Ukraine can stay in the fight long enough to achieve real peace – one that guarantees its independence and sovereignty.

February

President Donald Trump speaks during a joint press conference with France’s President Emmanuel Macron.

Europe, Australia must fight to keep the world safe from Trump

Europe and its allies will have to defend liberal democracy without American support.

French President Emmanuel Macron welcomes European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen at crisis talks in Paris.

Europe needs to toughen up and shrug off Trump’s bullying

European leaders need to reduce their dangerous dependence on a new adversarial America.

Donald Trump, during his first presidency, meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit in 2019.

Why China may be relishing Trump’s tariff showdown

By targeting allies and neighbours with tariffs, the US is playing into the hands of China.

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January

Two types of democracy. President Trump holds up an executive order commuting sentences for people convicted of offenses during the January 6, 2021, riots on Capitol Hill.

Trump and the contest between two visions of democracy

If supporters of liberal democracy want to win the battle, outrage and resistance will not be enough. They will have to defeat the arguments of the strongman leaders.

December 2024

Donald Trump is a sworn enemy of what he calls “globalism”.

5 ways ‘America First’ could transform the world in 2025

Donald Trump is leading the way, but Russia and China are also seeking radical change to the status quo.

The governments of Olaf Scholz, Justin Trudeau and Yoon Suk Yeol are all in crisis.

Why the world’s leading democracies are in crisis

The majority of G7 governments are now so burdened with domestic political problems that they are incapable of steering their own countries – let alone the free world.

Smoke billows as people arrive in Damascus to celebrate the fall of the Syrian government.

Assad’s fall is an embarrassing blow to Putin

Lots could still go wrong in Syria, but the fall of a brutal regime aligned to other brutal regimes is a good thing.

November 2024

Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu in 2017.

Netanyahu arrest warrant is a dangerous problem for the West

Donald Trump is likely to try to destroy the International Criminal Court over the pursuit for Israel’s leaders, but this is not in anybody’s interests.

Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin will benefit from Donald Trump’s vengeful attack on America’s establishments.

Trump’s foreign enemies are about to get a significant boost

The president-elect is threatening to gut the institutions that make America great, which can only benefit Russia and China.

Trump’s view of US foreign policy harks back to a pre-1941 vision of the country’s role in the world.

Trump and Harris poles apart on foreign policy

Beneath the slogans and insults, the Trump and Harris camps have fundamentally different views of how to prevent the world from sliding into conflict.

October 2024

Donald Trump at a campaign rally in North Carolina this week. His victory would bring wildness and volatility back to the Oval Office.

Why these world leaders want Trump to win

The former president’s stress on power and indifference to democracy and human rights worries the EU. But it makes him the preferred partner of strongmen around the world.

Iranians chant as they gather to listen to Ali Khamenei’s speech at the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla mosque.

This is the only way Iran’s regime can topple

Military intervention from Israel or the United States is unlikely to bring about the fall of the Islamic republic.

A cleric clenches his fist as he celebrates Iran’s missile strike against Israel in an anti-Israeli gathering in Tehran.

Trump could be the biggest winner from Middle East escalation

The former president claims the world was at peace during his rule and that the “weakness” of the Biden administration has led to wars in Europe and the Levant.

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September 2024

A billboard bearing a picture of slain Lebanese Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on display in Tehran.

Israel’s dream of a new Middle East order could become a nightmare

With its decapitation of Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Israeli government hopes that it has finally seized the initiative in the battle with its regional enemies.

Kamala Harris

Harris must dazzle in debate or face defeat

The Democratic candidate badly needs a breakthrough in this week’s televised debate to restore momentum to her faltering campaign.

Elon Musk

Why Elon Musk is much more powerful than you think

His influence is showing up from Ukraine to China, angering the United States, although he still lacks the ability to make the law.

August 2024

Ukrainians prepare to fire rockets towards Russian positions near Chasiv Yar town, in Donetsk region.

An aggressive Ukraine has crossed Washington’s red line

Volodymyr Zelensky is prepared to ignore Russia’s nuclear threats. But the Biden administration is still wary of escalating the war.

July 2024

Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in 2019.

The real danger that Trump would pose for Ukraine

Agreeing to Russia’s demand for a neutral Ukraine, as a new Republican presidency might, could leave the country at the mercy of Vladimir Putin’s long-term ambitions.

Original URL: https://www.afr.com/by/gideon-rachman-h1fpqq