How will Donald Trump’s win impact US foreign policy? Fareed Zakaria explains

Donald Trump’s victory in the upcoming US presidential election will impair the US’s Ukraine policy, as the Republican leader has some kind of affection for Russian President Vladimir Putin, said veteran journalist and geopolitical expert Fareed Zakaria.

Speaking to India Today TV’s Consulting Editor Rajdeep Sardesai, Zakaria said whoever wins the next election, be it Donald Trump or his Democratic rival Kamala Harris, it won’t change America’s foreign policy in West Asia.

“On the war in West Asia, I don’t think it would make that much of a difference. The American political system largely reflects the reality that Americans are very much pro-Israel,” said Zakaria.

On the Ukraine war, however, Zakaria raised questions about Trump’s equation with Putin, considering the allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election when Trump came to power.

“Trump basically has some kind of affection for Putin. We’ve seen this in the recent revelations that he sent Putin Covid tests in the early part of the pandemic,” said Zakaria.

The veteran journalist also claimed that Trump tried to blackmail Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“Ukraine is the place where he was… that was his first impeachment because he essentially tried to blackmail President Zelenskyy. When Zelenskyy asked for weapons, he said I’ll give you weapons if you start an investigation against Joe Biden,” Zakaria said.

“Trump has a bad history with Ukraine, whereas Kamala Harris will continue Biden’s policy,” he added.

When it comes to India, Zakaria said a win for Kamala Harris would benefit New Delhi more.

Zakaria highlighted Trump’s stand on tariffs on goods being imported from India and has promised to impose higher tariffs, which will be very tough on the Indian economy.

“Every other issue will pale in insignificance if Trump actually does what he says, what he repeatedly promises he intends to do, which is to put tariffs. The problem with Trump is you never know if he means what he says,” Zakaria said.

“For India to move to its next phase of growth, it needs to be able to export high value-added goods, particularly to markets like the US,” he added.