"What does that mean?" Question about military alliance throws Trump off track

Frankfurter Rundschau "What does that mean?" Question about military alliance throws Trump off track Patrick Mayer • 7 hours • 3 minutes reading time During the visit of the British Prime Minister During Keir Starmer's state visit, US President Donald Trump is thrown off course when he is asked about a military alliance. This is causing a stir, especially in Australia. Washington - First Emmanuel Macron, now Keir Starmer: The heads of state and government of Europe are eagerly traveling to the USA to find out what will happen to their countries and the United States under the new US President Donald Trump (Republican Party). Donald Trump: Was the President not aware of a US military alliance? After all, the 78-year-old Republican is causing quite a stir internationally with his previous customs decisions and his plans for the Ukraine war. For example, through negotiations with Volodymyr Zelenskyj about rare earths from Ukraine, or through the alleged plan to close a US base in Greece. British Prime Minister Starmer (Labour Party) is said to have been quite aggressive towards Trump in the White House on Thursday (February 27), while French President Macron tried to be downright charming. And before Trump literally threw Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj out of the Oval Office the following day. According to several media reports, Trump is said to have made a real faux pas at the meeting with Starmer. The US President was apparently not familiar with the American-Australian-British military alliance AUKUS. Probably because of China: USA, Great Britain and Australia founded AUKUS military alliance Or at least he couldn't make sense of the term at first. Specifically: During a press conference in the Oval Office on Thursday, the US President was asked by a journalist whether he intended to discuss the AUKUS military alliance at his meeting with Starmer. "What does that mean?" Trump asked, apparently confused, as ABC News writes on its news website. "AUKUS - the Australian-American defense alliance," the reporter then explained to Trump. Trump replied: "Well, we will discuss it. We have had another great relationship with Australia, and so have you (the British, ed.). We have had a very good relationship with Australia." AUKUS is a trilateral security pact that aims to equip Australia with three nuclear submarines built in the United States by the 2030s. According to ABC News, the Australians are spending around $4.78 billion on this, which is flowing into the American arms industry. According to political observers, China's growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region is one reason for the alliance. AUKUS AUKUS is a trilateral military alliance that was concluded in mid-September 2021 between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States under the then administration of Joe Biden (Democrats). According to observers' unanimous assessment, the agreement was primarily aimed at countering China's growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region. Does Donald Trump support the AUKUS alliance with Australia and Great Britain? The fact that Trump spoke about interstate relations in the past tense is likely a reference to his memories of his first term in office between 2017 and 2021, when he was already the 45th President of the United States. The new US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth had already met with Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles in Washington at the beginning of February. Australia is described as an important partner in the Indo-Pacific for the Americans, with regard to global rival China. Hegseth confirmed at the time that Trump supports the AUKUS alliance. British and Australian media had noted Trump's supposed ignorance with concern. For example, The Guardian headlined: "Trump's momentary slip-up that shattered Australia's deep fear of abandonment." Australian politicians subsequently tried to downplay the significance of Trump's slip-up. Unlike the British and Americans, Australia is not part of the NATO defense alliance, which Trump is putting particular pressure on. Tensions are also increasing in the Indo-Pacific region. Indo-Pacific: Tensions between China and Australia are increasing On February 20, the Ministry of Defense in Canberra reported the sighting of three Chinese warships off the east coast of Australia. And: A few days earlier, a Chinese fighter jet had dropped flares over the South China Sea near an Australian Air Force aircraft patrolling there. (pm)