Donald Trump wins: Republican candidate Donald Trump registered a decisive victory after defeating his Democratic rival Kamala Harris in a bitterly fought election. The 78-year-old Republican leader, the oldest person in US history to be elected president, crossed the halfway 270 votes-mark in electoral college votes with victory in the battleground state of Wisconsin. He will be tested immediately, however, and there are reasons to believe that he can deliver his promises. In the past, we took tough decisions to meet his words.
Meanwhile, Trump took centre stage with a thumping victory riding on bold poll promises. Experts have a consensus that considering his first term in the White House (2017–2021), the Republican leader can bring about drastic changes in the next tenure.
As Trump created a buzz across the world with a historic comeback, memories of some controversial but tough moves in his last term in the White House revived in the minds of those who observe global politics closely. People may criticise or appreciate his last term in the President's office but there is no second opinion that his tenure was very impactful.
Here, we listed his seven bold decisions that left a far-reaching impact-
- Trump-Kim Summit: Trump surprised the world by meeting his arch-rival North Korean Chairman Kim Jong Un at a time when both statesmen were threatening each other with nuclear bombs. In June 2018, an unexpected event occurred when Trump and Kim met and shook hands at the North Korea–United States Singapore Summit, commonly known as the 2018 Trump-Kim Summit. The powerful picture of both aggressive leaders remained in trend for days. In another surprising move, Trump entered North Korea to call on Kim. He became the first sitting US President to set foot on North Korean soil.
- Withdrawal from Paris Agreement: On 4 November 2020, the Trump administration deposited the notification with the Secretary General of the United Nations and officially withdrew itself from the Paris Agreement, sending a shocking wave among climate activists who were working for the success of the agreement to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. The Paris Agreement was drafted to strengthen the global response to the climate change threat.
- Trump wall: Trump had promised to build a wall across the border with Mexico which is 1,933 miles long, stretching from the Pacific Ocean to the tip of South Texas. After coming to power in 2017, he ordered to fence the border to deal with illegal immigration from the neighbouring country. However, the Trump administration succeeded in constructing 40 miles (64 km) wall along the border. His move was criticised by the Opposition Democratic Party. The social activists also condemned the move, calling it anti-human policy.
- Abandoning Iran nuclear deal: During the Trump tenure, the Iran nuclear deal under which Iran had agreed to not develop nuclear weapons, conceived a big blow after then US President Trump decided to pull his nation out from the agreement in May 2018. After Trump's decision to abandon the deal (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action), Iran got an opportunity to revive its ambitions to have nuclear weapons by increasing uranium enrichment.
- Attacks on WTO: Trump cried down the role of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) by repeatedly attacking the global trade body. On several occasions, then President Trump threatened to pull the US out of the WTO, alleging it hasn’t been fair to the US in its rulings.
- Blocking funding to Pakistan: In January 2018, the Trump administration suspended about USD 2 billion in security aid to Pakistan. The White House sanctioned Pakistan for failing to clamp down on the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani Network terror groups on its soil.
- Abraham Accords: In September 2020, Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Minister of Foreign Affairs for the United Arab Emirates Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyanisigns and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bahrain Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani signed the Abraham Accords on the South Lawn of the White House. Trump played an instrumental role in materialising the historic agreement that recognizes the importance of maintaining and strengthening peace in the Middle East.
