How Foreign Leaders and Officials are Reacting to Trump's Election

How Foreign Leaders and Officials are Reacting to Trump's Election

by Whitney Ahn

          Harjit Sajjan, the Canadian Minister of National Defence, said he was "looking forward" to Donald Trump's inauguration, something commonly said about most new President-elects by foreign officials. However, Donald Trump is not most President-elects.

          Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, offered a mixed tone, saying she'd be willing to work with Donald Trump because German-American relations are essential to her country. The deputy chancellor, Sigmar Gabriel, however, was far more blunt, saying that "Trump is a trailblazer of a new authoritarian and chauvinist international movement."

          Another international major figure, former Pakistani Ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqan, has also come out with negativity. Today at the Halifax International Security Forum, said of anti-Muslim rhetoric that "harm has already been done... people who like me can't help you."

          Similarly to Merkel, Federica Mogherini (the European Union's foreign affairs chief) tweeted her reaction to Trump's victory: "EU-US ties are deeper than any change in politics." This implies that she has some fears that Trump will cause a major shift regarding American politics towards Europe. Martin Schulz, the president of the European parliament, called Trump's elect "a protest vote" similar to Brexit.

          NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that he was looking forward to working with Trump, but emphasized that "it is important that the transatlantic bond remains strong." Trump has repeatedly called for pulling out of funding for NATO unless other countries agree to pay more.

          Theresa May congratulated Trump on his victory. After Brexit, the UK is trying to maintain positive relationships with as many countries as possible. Nicola Sturgeon, the First Minister of Scotland, went in an opposing route, calling for Trump to prove he "will be a president for everyone in modern, multicultural America."

          In France, President François Hollande said that Trump's win "opens up a period of uncertainty." Hollande had previously endorse Secretary Clinton in the presidential race. He emphasized that "certain positions taken by Donald Trump" put many things in jeopardy, saying that "what is at stake is peace, the fight against terrorism, the situation in the Middle East... economic relations, and the preservation of the planet." However, Marine Le Pen, a major opposition figure globally known for her controversial rhetoric regarding ethnic and racial minorities considered offensive by many, has shown the utmost support for Trump. Trump has returned the favor by going so far as to prioritize conversations with Le Pen above even talking to the French president, and many other world leaders.

          Vladimir Putin sent a telegram to Trump (yes, they still do that), congratulating him. At a ceremony at the Kremlin, he said that "it's not our fault that Russian-American relations our in such a poor state," but expressed optimism that under Trump, the two nations can come closer. Putin clearly sees an opportunity to connect with Trump, and hopes to increase co-operation between the two. In Ukraine, President Petro Poroshenko met with the US ambassador on Wednesday, and claimed that he remained optimistic that "the US administration would remain a reliable partner in the struggle for democracy."

          Isreali Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Trump, and was extremely enthusiastic about his election. One of his ministers, Naftali Bennett, declared that Trump's victory meant that "the era of a Palestinian state is over." Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbasaid expressed serious caution but optimism. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that Trump's "elections marks the beginning of a new era," and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that the election has no impact on Iranian policies.

          Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto expressed a willingness to work with Trump, after being criticized heavily within his country for having dialogues with him while he was still a candidate. Former presidential candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador said that Mexico is "a free independent, sovereign country," that it is neither a colony nor a protectorate, and that Mexico depends on no foreign government.

          China's President Xi Jinping congratulated Trump, and Lu Kang, a spokesperson for China's foreign ministry, said that they were looking forward to working with him. Joko Widodo, the president of Indonesia (the world's largest Muslim nation), said that he "thinks there will be no change." President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines, known for mass murders and insulting Barack Obama (he called him a "son of a whore" earlier this year), extended warm congratulations

          Japan's Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, was the first foreign leader to meet with Trump, and expressed cautious optimism, a tone that seems to be struck by the vast majority of foreign leaders and officials.