Donald Trump’s comeback is now certain, after he decisively won re-election to the White House, but there is growing uncertainty over how his second-term administration will deal with the Asia-Pacific—a region of increasing strategic relevance and home to a number of international economic and security concerns for the U.S.
Experts tell TIME that Trump’s first term, as well as his promises on the campaign trail, can offer clues about his potential approach to Asia. Shortly after his inauguration in 2017, Trump withdrew the U.S. from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade deal involving many Asian states, signaling his dislike of multilateralism. As President, Trump did not regularly show up at regional summits. If he did, he attacked member-states of international groups, accusing them of abusing trade relations with Washington.Trump also questioned the fairness of mutual defense treaties that rely on American military power.
In 2018, Trump launched a trade war against China—placing tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars …