Trump II and the World / Politique étrangère, Vol. 90, No. 3, 2025

Does Trumpism exist? And if so, how can its ideology be characterized, given the myriad currents underpinning it—from populism and the Christian Right to paleolibertarianism and technolibertarianism? Does it embody a genuine worldview that informs its diplomatic actions? An obsessive drive to overturn long-standing practices, alliances, and commitments deemed “detrimental” to American interests, coupled with a fixation on transactional, one-off deals, appears to serve as its de facto strategy—hence the widespread weakening of allied ties. Observers are equally at a loss to discern an economic strategy, and above all reluctant to anticipate the possible outcomes of its contradictory maneuvers.

Faced with the Trump tornado and the havoc it is wreaking on the Old Continent, European nations seem hesitant: How will they ensure their security going forward—and against whom, and with what means—if the United States confirms even a partial withdrawal of military support? How should Europeans go about devising a comprehensive security strategy? How can their concrete defense needs be identified? Should Europeans turn a blind eye, resign themselves to the situation, or rally their forces to change it—and at what economic and political cost?
European interests extend beyond the continent itself. For this quarter, Politique étrangère also turns its attention to the Middle East, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Asia-Pacific region, the main stage for the economic tug-of-war between China and the US. It also examines the misfortune that has befallen Haiti—a situation in which France played no small part, yet it remains one of the few countries actively concerned about Haiti’s plight.
This issue is available in French only: Trump II et le monde
TRUMP II AND THE WORLD
Trump II: The Clash of Ideologies, by Laurence Nardon
The Geopolitics of the Second Trump Administration, by Alix Frangeul-Alves and Martin Quencez
Donald Trump’s Economic Nationalism, by Norbert Gaillard
Trump II and Asia: The Wind is Picking Up..., by Marc Julienne
The Second Trump Administration and the Middle East, by Rym Momtaz
DOES EUROPE HAVE THE MEANS TO DEFEND ITSELF?
The Defense of Europe: A New Crisis of Principles, by Olivier Schmitt
Europe Uncovered?, by Élie Tenenbaum and Guillaume Garnier
CURRENT AFFAIRS
Turkey-PKK: Forty Years, All for Nothing?, by Adel Bakawan
Iraqi Shiites: Religious and Strategic Drivers of Iranian Influence, by Alain Monnier
BAROMETERS
Jihadism: North African Combatants in the Syrian-Iraqi Zone, by Djallil Lounnas
The Challenges Facing Nigerian Oil in the Niger Delta, by Marc-Antoine Pérouse de Montclos
Value Chains and Investments in Asia, by Paul Salez
REFLECTIONS
Iran’s Nuclear Program: Evaluation Methods and Difficulties, by Cyril Gelibter
Haiti 1825–2025: The Geopolitics of Debt, by Jean Marie Théodat
BOOK REVIEWS
Editor: Marc Hecker
Multinationales. Une histoire du monde contemporain, by Olivier Petitjean and Ivan du Roy (eds.), by Vincent Vicard
232 pages. 23 euros.
September 9th, 2025.
Diffusion : Pollen/Dif'Pop.
Subscription: Armand Colin.
To buy an issue: leslibraires.fr.
To buy the Epub (in French): Immatériel.fr.
Have a look on Politique étrangère's blog: Politique étrangère.
Available in:
Themes and regions
ISBN / ISSN
Share
Download the full analysis
This page contains only a summary of our work. If you would like to have access to all the information from our research on the subject, you can download the full version in PDF format.
Trump II and the World / Politique étrangère, Vol. 90, No. 3, 2025
Find out more
Discover all our analysesThe "Europe of Internal Security": An Unknown Quantity - Politique étrangère, Vol. 90, No. 2, Summer 2025
The new European Internal Security Strategy, unveiled by the European Commission in April 2025, provides an opportunity to shine a light on a little-known policy. To mitigate the problems created by freedom of movement, substantial additions have been made to European internal security policy over the last few years. The European Union is constantly striving to become stronger in order to combat crime, terrorism, illegal immigration, and hybrid threats more effectively.
Navigating the Multilateral Seas: Lost in Decomposition? - Politique étrangère, Vol. 90, No. 2, Summer 2025
Institutionalized multilateralism seems to be under threat from power politics, especially within the UN system. There are continuing demands for the UN to be reformed. And flexible forms of consultation are being developed, such as club diplomacy and minilateralism. The reshaping of multilateralism is thus taking place mainly outside the institutional system, and its distance from the liberal international order and the multipolar order makes it less likely that the earth's habitability will be placed at the top of the multilateral agenda.

Multilateralisms: Survival or Revival?
The organized multilateralism born out of the Second World War and the Cold War, and revived in the 1990s with the dream of a world of peaceful “global governance,” has fizzled out. The erosion of the large universal frameworks (United Nations, World Trade Organization, arms control and disarmament, international criminal justice, and so on) did not give way to a void but to an excess: a multitude of agreements and schemes that bore witness to the accelerated rebuilding of international relationships. Will institutional anarchy and the open competition of interests visible in uninhibited struggles for power be able to organize themselves around common fundamental interests in the future?
Trump 2: Challenges for the US Military Posture - Politique étrangère, Vol. 90, No. 1, Spring 2025
The distribution of operational leverage points in US strategy has changed significantly over the past two decades, with a sharp reduction. Donald Trump's distancing and repeated criticism of traditional US alliances threaten to undermine the entire architecture of the US presence in the world, beyond the concrete, real and, in particular, industrial impasses of America's military posture.