After nearly six years in the White House and more than a decade at the center of American politics, Donald Trump can still shock the world. In the past week alone, he has hinted at new attacks on Iran after the midterm elections, said that the U.S. will buy diesel fuel from Russia as American officials warned Europeans about a possible cutoff of weapons, announced an “energy cease-fire” that appeared to catch Kyiv by surprise, mused publicly about resuming hostilities against the Houthis, and called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to step aside.
The president’s latest burst of diplomatic activity reflects his convictions about Iran, Russia, the importance of energy and the unimportance of Europe. He has seen Iran as a threat to the U.S. since the 1980s and believes that an Iranian nuclear weapon or Iranian domination of the Persian Gulf’s energy resources would threaten American interests. He believes that fossil fuels will remain a key element of geopolitical and economic power and wants the U.S. to play the predominant role in the Gulf.