Trump and the end of the liberal order

Abstract

This article examines the core tenets of Donald Trump’s foreign policy, highlighting the continuity between his two terms. This continuity is rooted in shifts in the global distribution of power and the unravelling of the liberal order. Yet, the administration has also made a decisive break with the post-1945 liberal framework. Trump sought to reform the liberal order in his first term; he now aims to dismantle it, deeming it incompatible with us national interests. The article focuses on the president’s transactional worldview, protectionist trade policies, rivalry with China, and transatlantic tensions that undermine NATO’s Article 5 and spur greater European strategic autonomy. For Portugal, such change brings significant implications.