Empires have always justified coercion in the language of stability, and intervention in the language of order. History has a brutal habit of exposing those peacemaker gentlemen whose peace travels through cruise missiles or Delta forces storming the palace of a sovereign leader and kidnapping him along with his wife.
When a leader declares himself the ‘President of peace’, the first question is not what he says, but what burns after he says it. In contemporary geopolitics, peace is proclaimed from the podium, enforced from 30,000 feet—signed with applause, sealed with sanctions, and underwritten by the quiet hum of drones circling in the dark.
During the 2024 election campaign, the one and only former president Donald J. Trump criticized then President Joe Biden’s foreign policy as ‘flawed’. On occasion, he blamed Biden’s weak presidency for the Ukraine War, and Hamas’s attack in Israel.
He emphasized “peace through strength”, not endless war fighting which he thought was poor handling at the end of democrats. He also blasted Biden’s decision to allow Ukraine to fire long-range ATACMS missiles into Russia as ‘stupid’. He also claimed that he will “end the Ukraine war in 24 hours” after entering office and Hamas and Israel would have peace.
Peace, in election season, is a slogan; but in office it is a test. The situation became totally 180degrees, opposite to what he claimed. The self-proclaimed “president of peace”, accelerated the very wars he vowed to stop.
The first test came very quickly: the Biden-led “Operation Prosperity Guardian” against the Houthis in Yemen became the first priority of the incoming administration. Although against this operation and war against Yemen, Trump repeatedly bombed the country ending up in civilian casualties. The very president which claimed to spend no money on foreign wars became embroiled in a conflict his voter’s base deemed as ‘betrayal’ to their mandate.
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The list is not exhaustive; Donald Trump did the unthinkable: what no president dared, he bombed Iran in what he labeled as ‘Operation Midnight Hammer’. The operation was carried out as the 12-day war with Israel was in progress and it showed no signs of ending.
He claimed, “The operation was a spectacular military success and that Iran’s nuclear facilities were entirely obliterated.” The contrast was brutal: the president who announced “end” for foreign wars, indulged in one of the most unclear wars which may not end up well for his country.
The 2025 India-Pakistan crisis, which Trump claimed to have ended, was ironically fueled by him. According to some reports, Trump claimed numerous times about the downing of multiple aircrafts during the India-Pakistan war and he helped to avert a nuclear war. Although what may be seen as “benign statements”, was in fact infuriating India and may have led to serious repercussions as New Delhi strongly refuted any intervention from Trump in stopping the war.
Although very skeptical of the Russia–Ukraine war, Donald J. Trump did not try in a meaningful way to bring about the end of the largest conflict since WWII. Weapons supplies to Kyiv continued, alongside critical intelligence which helped Ukraine to strike military targets belonging to the Russian federation.
Instead, Trump made it a ‘business opportunity’, asking Europeans to purchase weapons from the U.S. and transfer them to Ukraine. This step enraged Russia, fueled the already volatile situation, and since then, war has no signs of stopping.
Donald Trump also threatened to annex Greenland—world’s largest Island— currently under the control of Denmark. Additionally, Trump did not rule out the possibility of “use of force” to fulfill its ambitions. This unprovoked demand originated one of the most intense crises in the Arctic where decades of transatlantic relations was about to escalate into an open conflict. The European states refuted Trump’s demands, deployed military forces to Greenland and prepared to fight their NATO ally.
Despite Israeli genocidal assault on Gaza, Trump refused to hold off Israel: accelerated weapons transfer, provided veto shelter, and imposed sanctions on ICC for issuing arrest warrants against Netanyahu. Not stopping at this, Trump devised a neocolonial plan to cleanse the population in Gaza strip and make it a perfect “real estate.”
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The infamous “Board of Peace” was announced to manage transitional security and post-Hamas governance in the Gaza strip. This plan would eventually lead to a so-called Palestinian state, without having any representative from Palestine in the board.
Trump expanded imperial actions in Venezuela: imposed a unilateral siege, bombed the country and kidnapped the sitting head of state. Moreover, he threatened Brazil, Cuba, Colombia, Mexico, and other Latin American states of military action if they did not accept Trump’s demands.
As of now, Trump is bombing Iran again in collaboration with its ally Israel. Multiple fighter jets have reportedly fired standoff munitions on targets in Iran; President Trump is boasting about the regime change in the country, demanding the Iranians must overthrow the government.
If peace was to come through press conferences, there would have been no battlefields in the world. The self-declared president of peace became a statue of war itself. In sum, there is a stark difference between what one claims at the election campaigns and performs in the office.
History is unkind to the naivety of taking the politicians’ words as they are. Trump is a clear embodiment of that; what everyone thought to have neared peace, the self-claimed peacemaker has shattered the worlds of many.
*The views presented in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Diplomatic Insight.
Muhammad Mahad Samija
Muhammad Mahad Samija is a student of Political Science at Government College University, Lahore. He can be reached at muhammadmahadsamija@gmail.com
