As
Donald Trump nears one year into his second presidential term, the US has pursued an increasingly aggressive military posture across multiple regions, even as Trump has intermittently spoken of "peace." In a New York Times interview, Trump went further, asserting that his "own morality" is the only constraint on his power to order military action anywhere in the world.
Trump’s remarks to The New York Times came days after he launched a strong military operation to topple Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, alongside issuing threats against a host of other countries and the autonomous territory of Greenland.
“Yeah, there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me,” Trump told the newspaper when asked whether there were any limits on his global powers.
“I don’t need international law,” he added. “I’m not looking to hurt people.”
The Republican president then said that “I do” need to abide by international law, but qualified it by adding that “it depends what your definition of international law is.”
On China and Taiwan, Trump was asked about President
Xi Jinping’s view of Taiwan as a separatist threat to China. Trump responded, “That’s up to him, what he’s going to be doing. But, you know, I’ve expressed to him that I would be very unhappy if he did that, and I don’t think he’ll do that. I hope he doesn’t.”
Referring to recent tensions between China and Taiwan, including threats to choke off the island, Trump said he believes the Chinese president would not take such steps while he remains in office. “He may do it after we have a different president, but I don’t think he’s going to do it with me as president,” Trump said.
Explaining why he felt the United States needed to possess Greenland, Trump told the NYT, “Because that’s what I feel is psychologically needed for success. I think that ownership gives you a thing that you can’t do with, you’re talking about a lease or a treaty. Ownership gives you things and elements that you can’t get from just signing a document.”
Turning to Europe, Trump said, “I think we’ll always get along with Europe, but I want them to shape up. I’m the one that got them to spend more on the, you know, more GDP on Nato. But if you look at Nato, Russia, I can tell you is not at all concerned with any other country but us. I’ve been very loyal to Europe. I’ve done a good job. If it weren’t for me, Russia would have all of Ukraine right now.”
The US is not a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which prosecutes war crimes, and has repeatedly rejected rulings by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the United Nations’ top judicial body.
Trump himself has had multiple run-ins with domestic law. He has been impeached twice, faced a series of federal charges, including conspiring to overturn the 2020 election, which were later dropped after his re-election, and was convicted for covering up a hush money payment to a porn star.
Even as he proclaims himself a “peace president” and seeks the Nobel Prize, and so far made open demands about it.
Trump has launched a string of military operations during his second term.
In June, Trump ordered attacks on Iran’s nuclear program, and over the past year he has overseen strikes on Iraq, Nigeria, Somalia, Syria, Yemen -- and most recently, Venezuela, taking custody of Maduro.
Following Maduro’s capture, a more emboldened Trump has threatened several other countries, including Colombia, as well as Greenland, which is administered by Nato ally Denmark.
When asked whether his priority was preserving the Nato military alliance or acquiring Greenland, Trump told the Times: “it may be a choice.”
Some members of Congress, including a small number of Republicans, have sought to rein in Trump’s powers.
On Thursday, the Senate advanced a measure aimed at limiting presidential military action in Venezuela. However, even if it reaches his desk, Trump would likely veto it.
The billionaire president, who built his fortune as a property developer, also said that US ownership of Greenland is “what I feel is psychologically needed for success.”
Trump separately said he had no issue with his family conducting foreign business deals since his return to office.
“I prohibited them from doing business in my first term, and I got absolutely no credit for it,” Trump told the daily. “I found out that nobody cared, and I’m allowed to.”