Trump’s Makeover of US Diplomacy Leaves Many Allies at a Loss

Before President Donald Trump took office for a second time, European officials thought they had him figured out. He was transactional, they said, a man motivated by a good deal.

Some bragged they knew how to do business with him based on their interactions with the self-proclaimed deal maker in his first term.

They were in for a rude awakening. Trump in 2025 is not the same as he was in 2017.

Donald Trump and JD Vance during meetings in the Oval Office.

Photographer: Bonnie Cash/UPI/Bloomberg

Like with most things in Trump’s tenure so far, the president’s second-term playbook on diplomacy marks a significant shift from the past. One Arab diplomat in Washington ...