Donald Trump is serving his last term as president. The US Constitution prohibits serving more than two terms as president, so Trump does not have much time left for grand gestures that would be appreciated by history (at least American history).
The MAGA (Make America Great Again) policy, referring to Reagan's 1980 campaign doctrine, speaks of the need to restore the former glory of the US. Trump's current senior advisor Stephen Miller summed it up very simply for the world: "We are a superpower. And under President Trump, we will act like a superpower."
Withdrawal from the WHO
Trump entered 2025 with a bang in the field of international politics when, in January 2025, he ordered the withdrawal of the US from the World Health Organization (WHO) due to "the organization's mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic" and at the same time ordered the US to stop participating in negotiations on the WHO Pandemic Agreement.
The WHO thus lost an important member and its largest sponsor, and the loss of revenue from America caused a financial crisis in the health organization (also due to unpaid amounts from the Joe Biden administration). Currently, one of the WHO's largest sponsors is the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which contributes up to 13.32 percent of the organization's total budget.
The UN as a propagator of anti-Semitism and the end of the Paris Agreement
In addition to the WHO, Trump ordered the withdrawal from 31 UN agencies, which UN Secretary-General António Guterres expressed regret about. In justifying the withdrawal, Trump claims that "some UN agencies and bodies have strayed from their mission to prevent future global conflicts and promote international peace and security, and instead act contrary to the interests of the United States, attacking our allies and spreading anti-Semitism."
In this case, too, there are concerns about the financing of institutions, as the US was a major financial contributor to the UN budget, but these funds have been transferred to America's military spending.
The United States has also withdrawn from the Paris Agreement (an international treaty that commits states to combating climate change) on the grounds that "American taxpayer dollars have been redirected to countries that do not require or deserve financial assistance." Trump stated in this regard that the US had made sufficient efforts in the field of environmental protection.
Sanctions against the ICC removed a judge from the banking system
Among America's unprecedented interventions in internationally recognized institutions is the imposition of sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC) and its representatives because the US disagrees with the issuance of an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Israel is one of America's closest allies, and according to the ICC, Prime Minister Netanyahu is suspected of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by the Tel Aviv government during the war in the Gaza Strip.
American sanctions have resulted in concrete steps against at least six ICC judges and three prosecutors. French ICC judge Nicolas Guillou, who signed the arrest warrant for Netanyahu, was denied access to the US-administered global banking system due to sanctions.
A new era of military aggression and NATO threats
Even more shocking are the military interventions and threats by the US against other countries, often (and traditionally) under implausible or even false pretexts.
The attack by US armed forces on Venezuela and the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife under the pretext of criminal prosecution for narco-terrorism shocked the civilized world. It was not just the absurd accusations (the accusation of Maduro's leading position in a drug cartel has already been dropped) and the sudden unprovoked attack on a foreign country, which is a clear violation of international law.
After the attack, President Trump made no secret of the fact that their main goal was to gain control of Venezuela's oil reserves. Trump then threatened the new Venezuelan government, led by interim President Delcy Rodríguez, that if it "did not obey, it would end up worse than Maduro."
Trump addressed threats of armed force not only to representatives of Cuba and Colombia, but also did not hesitate to talk about the possible appropriation of Greenland (part of Denmark) by military means. The US president declared Greenland a strategic target of national interest, which he would occupy militarily if he could not "buy" it.
He thus openly acknowledged the possibility of military conflict within the NATO alliance, which is unprecedented in its history. European leaders are not taking these threats lightly and have begun to strengthen defenses on the old continent. However, there is little chance that they would have the courage to stand up to a possible US military invasion.
In light of these events, the US attack on Iranian nuclear facilities as part of Operation Midnight Hammer in June 2025 still appears to be a reasonable effort to combat an authoritarian regime that is trying to develop nuclear weapons. In this regard, Trump has renewed the Maximum Pressure program (Maximum Pressure) on Iran, under which he wants to deny the country all paths to nuclear weapons and combat its harmful influence abroad.
US tariffs have crippled world trade
In light of military operations and fundamental changes in international organizations, Donald Trump's US tariffs against his allies in trade wars can be described as the least destructive in terms of preserving world order, even though they have had a major impact on global trade.
With the aim of "correcting trade practices that contribute to large and persistent annual trade deficits in goods in the United States," the US president has imposed reciprocal tariffs on imports.
Trump described the trade terms negotiated between the US and other countries to date as "an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and economy of the United States," from which we can infer an equally extreme view of the issue of promoting American interests at the expense of other countries.
The European Union and countries such as the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, and Switzerland have concluded agreements with the US to reduce tariffs in exchange for market access and investment commitments.
A $150 billion lawsuit
These measures have led to higher tariffs for many importers from countries traditionally perceived as US allies. However, these swift and harsh trade "sanctions" may not pass the US Supreme Court, which will rule on their legality, with the US administration facing the possibility of having to refund importers nearly $150 billion in tariffs if the court declares Trump's sweeping tariffs illegal.
In this dispute, large companies such as Costco, Revlon, Ray-Ban eyewear manufacturer EssilorLuxottica, Bumble Bee Foods, Yokohama Tire, and Kawasaki Motors have sued the US government and are demanding a refund of the tariffs paid.
All these changes in 2025—especially those of a military nature—have resulted in the global community awakening to a new era in which established agreements and international treaties can no longer be relied upon.
The old and established world order is coming to an end, thanks in part to Donald Trump's massive efforts.
Instead, the needs of world powers are coming to the fore, which, at least in the case of Russia and the US, will be pushed through by force. In the case of Russia and its attack on Ukraine, this was an unprecedented act of aggression that was condemned by the entire civilized world.
In the case of America's military interventions—also without justification in international law—the same people are now just quietly "shuffling their feet" and afraid to call a spade a spade.
The US, led by Trump, is transforming itself from the world's policeman to the world's judge and executioner in one. They are doing this simply because there is no one to stop them.