Former US president and the Republican Party’s presidential candidate Donald Trump on Thursday promised to bring an end to raging international crises and restore US prestige on the world stage, saying he could “stop wars with a telephone call.”
The former president sought to paint a dire picture of the world under his successor, US President Joe Biden, telling the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that the planet is “teetering on the edge of world war three.”
“We will restore peace, stability and harmony all throughout the world,” Trump said, without giving any detail on how he might do that.
Photo: AFP
“Under our leadership the United States will be respected again. No nation will question our power, no enemy will doubt our might, our borders will be totally secure,” he said.
Trump placed the blame for conflicts around the world squarely on Biden — even those with roots stretching back far before the Democrat took office.
“There is an international crisis the likes of which the world has seldom been part of ... war is now raging in Europe, in the Middle East, a growing specter of conflict hangs over Taiwan, Korea, the Philippines and all of Asia,” he said.
He vowed to change all that if he is elected to a second term in the White House.
“I will end every single international crisis that the current administration has created, including the horrible war with Russia and Ukraine,” Trump said.
However, “to achieve this future, we must first rescue our nation from failed and even incompetent leadership,” he added.
Trump also said he wanted Americans held abroad to be released — or else.
“The entire world, I tell you this: We want our hostages back and they better be back before I assume office or you will be paying a very big price,” Trump said — again failing to give any specifics.
He pledged to build a version of Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system for the US, ignoring that the system is designed for short-range threats and would be ill-suited to defending against intercontinental missiles that are the main danger to the country.
And he suggested that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un — whom he met in person during his presidency, and whose country possesses a nuclear arsenal — longed to see him back in the White House.
“I get along with him, he’d like to see me back, too. I think he misses me, if you want to know,” Trump said.
Meanwhile, associates of Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy have discussed holding a phone call between the two leaders, two sources familiar with the matter said.
Reuters was not able to immediately determine if the conversation, which would be their first since Trump left the White House in 2021, had been confirmed.
CNN said that the schedule of the former president is subject to frequent changes.
A representative for the Trump campaign declined to comment.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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