In a recent interview with The New York Times, Trump said he recognized only one constraint on his actions abroad, his own morality.
"My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me,” he said, later adding that he saw no need for international law.
The shift has been described by analysts as a move away from the long-standing US role as a key guarantor of the post-World War II international order, toward a more transactional approach that treats global politics as a contest of power.
That idea has been voiced publicly by Stephen Miller, one of Trump’s most influential advisers.
In an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper this month, Miller argued that international relations are governed by force.
“We live in a world governed by strength, governed by power, governed by might,” he said. “These are the iron laws of this world.” He used similar reasoning when defending US claims over Greenland.
The administration’s new direction was laid out in a National Security Strategy published in December, co-authored by Miller and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The document argues that Washington can no longer uphold the entire global system and signals a reduced ambition for the United States as the world’s dominant power.
“The days are over when the United States upheld the entire world order like Atlas,” it says.
Trump has paired that approach with aggressive trade policy. By imposing steep tariffs on goods from countries around the world, he has effectively dismantled the previous framework of international trade cooperation, according to critics.
Gary Hufbauer, a former US Treasury official and an expert at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, a Washington-based think tank, told Poland's PAP news agency that this was a real earthquake for the trading system.
Trump’s stance has been visible in his handling of Russia’s war against Ukraine. He has not ended the conflict, despite repeatedly promising he could do so within 24 hours of taking office.
His administration has openly discussed the possibility of Ukraine giving up territory to Russia, including the potential official recognition of areas annexed by Moscow.
Trump has said the United States is not taking sides while mediating, ended free US support for Ukraine, and shifted to selling weapons to NATO allies for onward transfer to Kyiv.
European allies have felt the impact most directly. While Trump has pressured NATO members to raise defense spending, he has also signaled a reduced US role as Europe’s main security guarantor.
One early sign was the withdrawal of a US infantry brigade previously stationed in Romania.
The Trump administration has also reframed relations with the European Union, viewing it mainly as a competitor.
The new US National Security Strategy criticized the bloc more sharply than any other ally, and Washington has dropped past restraint in commenting on domestic politics in allied countries, openly supporting candidates in elections, including in Poland.
Officials have signaled further interventions in favor of “patriotic” parties and movements that are skeptical of the European project.
In the Western Hemisphere, Trump has made border security and a US sphere of influence central priorities, tying his approach to the Monroe Doctrine, a policy dating to 1823 that warned European powers against interference in the Americas.
Supporters have dubbed the modern version the “Donroe Doctrine.”
Michael Carpenter, a former National Security Council official in the White House, called the administration’s strategy and practice a radical departure from all US policies since World War II.
He said the current leadership does not see the United States as the normative leader of the free world and is focused instead on a narrow concept of national interest.
(rt/gs)
Source: PAP