Donald Trump was sworn in for his second presidential term on 20 Jan 2025. As of today, 3 Mar 2026, he has served 407 days, causing disruptions including raising U.S. import tariffs, involvement in the Thai-Cambodian clashes, and most recently supporting Israel’s attack on Iran.
Over the past year, the world has experienced major shifts driven by a more intense "America First" policy, with key issues affecting global security and the economy as follows.
The Trump administration immediately shook the global trade system by imposing severe import tariffs:
• Unprecedented tariff walls: Tariffs were applied on nearly all product types, especially from China, reaching as high as 40%, with a baseline tariff of at least 10% on other countries. * Impact: Although this greatly increased U.S. tax revenues (over $280 billion in 2025), it caused prices in the U.S. to soar and disrupted global supply chains. Many countries retaliated with trade measures, slowing the global economy.
The world's most shocking event occurred on 3 Jan 2026 under the code name "Absolute Resolve":
• Capture: U.S. special forces raided Caracas and detained President Nicolás Maduro along with his wife to bring them to trial in New York on charges of "narcoterrorism."
• Hidden objective: Trump made clear the intervention aimed to secure energy stability, as the U.S. immediately signed an oil purchase agreement with Venezuela's interim government to reduce dependence on Middle Eastern oil.
Tensions in the Middle East reached a breaking point on 28 Feb 2026:
• Airstrikes: The U.S., alongside Israel, launched attacks on Iranian nuclear and missile sites. Trump claimed Iran was close to developing nuclear weapons, posing a direct threat to the U.S.
• Consequences: This escalated the risk of a full-scale regional war, caused crude oil prices to spike, and triggered retaliations at various U.S. military bases.
In ASEAN, the U.S. shifted strategy to counter China's power in the tech industry:
• Thailand as strategic ally: In Oct 2025, Thailand and the U.S. signed an MOU on Critical Minerals to establish a secure supply chain. The U.S. supports Thailand becoming a hub for rare earth processing and recycling for use in EV and clean energy sectors.
• Thailand-Cambodia case: Trump pushed for negotiations over overlapping maritime areas between Thailand and Cambodia to exploit natural gas and mineral resources, with U.S. energy firms ready to support drilling technologies to reduce China's influence in the region.
In the past 407 days, the world has entered Trump’s era of "assertive geopolitics," relying heavily on military power and tariffs as leverage. Thailand must carefully balance accepting U.S. investment in rare earth industries while maintaining trade relations with China, its key trading partner.
Trump’s term ends on 20 Jan 2025.