To restore stability in the Taiwan Strait, Trump and Xi “should initiate working-level talks to formulate a new U.S.-Chinese joint communiqué or, failing that, a pair of parallel statements,” argues @stephenwertheim.bsky.social.

Curious for a journalist to mischaracterize this piece of mine, which explicitly calls on the Trump admin to *reject* Beijing's requests for the United States to "support peaceful reunification" or "oppose Taiwan independence." There isn't a single Beijing "diktat" that I propose accepting.

When Trump and Xi meet on Thursday, they should take bold action to the reduce the risk of war over Taiwan. My proposal in @foreignaffairs.com (read for free at this gift link): www.foreignaffairs.com/guest-pass/r...

(2/2) . . . given the strategic importance it evidently now assigns to Taiwan, and US political support for Taiwan's democracy. And as long as that is the case, Beijing will not retreat from threatening the use of force.

(1/2) This is a great summary of the current situation, partly because it accepts that all three parties have played a role in fueling tensions. But here's the key sticking point: Washington may no longer be willing to accept the possibility of peaceful unification . . .

Trump and Xi should exchange assurances — ideally in a new U.S.-PRC joint communiqué — to stabilize cross-strait relations and reduce military activities around Taiwan. My proposal in @foreignaffairs.com: www.foreignaffairs.com/taiwan/towar...

“This is not liberal internationalism of the traditional variety, which realists would criticize for privileging support for democratic forces over America’s interests,” Wertheim said. “But it is a new, specifically Trumpian form of domestic interventionism.”

With this executive order, pledging to defend Qatar against any armed attack, Trump further entangles the United States in the conflicts, present and future, of the Middle East. www.whitehouse.gov/presidential...

No need for analysis when he's just saying it.

Having come to power exploiting the fears spawned by perpetual war abroad, Trump is defining the enemy of his war at home just as expansively. www.newyorker.com/news/our-col...

My remarks at Harvard's Weatherhead Forum: We have to come to grips with the errors of post-Cold War foreign policy — and not hide behind the post-1945 legacy — in order to understand the current moment and forge a better way forward. youtu.be/uGxZGIftNAE?...

I look forward to this conversation on Wednesday 9/17. Register now to join us:

Join us on September 17 @12pm ET for our first Weatherhead Forum of the year: "From Victory to Uncertainty: The Postwar Order After Eighty Years." This event is on Zoom and requires registration. For details, see our event listing: https://loom.ly/4cyzbws

🪖The title says it all. In the meantime, U.S. military spending and globalization continue to grow. @stephenwertheim.bsky.social #EmpireOfLiberty Trump Is a Situational Man in a Structural Bind www.nytimes.com/2025/07/22/o...

Looking for a report card on Trump's foreign policy after six months? I recommend this Christopher Chivvis interview of @stephenwertheim.bsky.social carnegieendowment.org/podcasts/piv...

Over the past few weeks as starvation in Gaza, long in the making and orchestrated by Israel, has reached unprecedented levels, politicians have finally risked criticism of the regime responsible, Sam Adler-Bell writes.

I told @nymag.com: People have memory-holed numerous episodes in the course of the Israel-Gaza War in which there was a new swell of opposition to Israel’s conduct and then it just died out. So I worry that we’re back on that cycle. nymag.com/intelligence...

I told @foreignpolicy.com: A foreign policy grounded in realism and restraint is still far from being the dominant position in either political party. There’s no question, however, that demand for it is rising, especially on the right, but also on the left, following a period of deference to Biden.

I joined ABC Australia's Radio National Hour to analyze Trump's penchant for deadline diplomacy — the hallmark of Trump the performer beating out Trump the realist. www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...

On @amprestigepod.bsky.social, @jekavanagh.bsky.social and I talked U.S. strategy toward Taiwan, arguing that in the event of a cross-strait invasion, the United States should assist Taiwan's self-defense but plan not to fight China directly. americanprestige.supportingcast.fm/listen/ameri...

I joined History As It Happens to expand on my argument that Trump faces a structural bind that inhibits him from being a peacemaker. Thanks for the fun conversation, @martindicaro.bsky.social. sites.libsyn.com/317972/trump...

Presidents can promise to be peacemakers, but the structures of U.S. primacy tilt toward war and violence. My conversation w/ historian @stephenwertheim on why it's so difficult for the U.S. to avoid "entanglements." Podcast: historyasithappens.libsyn.com/trump-and-th...

A pleasure to join @ianmastersmedia.bsky.social to discuss Trump's foreign policy vision and record to date: on.soundcloud.com/MCtkADMbEhka...

I told @nytimes.com: “It’s not that other parties are engaged in atrocities and the question is whether the United States will use its righteous power to stop [them]. In this case, the issue is that the United States is complicit in Israel’s conduct.” www.nytimes.com/2025/07/30/u...

We speak with @stephenwertheim.bsky.social about the good and the bad of having an amateur in the Oval Office and how Trump's lack of ideological vision is impacting our foreign policy. soundcloud.com/user-8304426...

President Trump’s M.O., especially in foreign policy, is to criticize the status quo. But, says @stephenwertheim.bsky.social, he's still stuck in it. Stephen breaks down why this is with ‪@jeetheer.bsky.social‬ for @thenation.com: www.thenation.com/podcast/worl...

Donald Trump's Foreign Policy Betrayal: really enjoyed talking with @jeetheer.bsky.social about why Trump keeps criticizing the status quo and then failing to change it. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/d...

"At the start of Mr. Trump’s second term, history didn’t merely repeat; it doubled down" www.nytimes.com/2025/07/22/o...

OPINION | Trump Is a Situational Man in a Structural Bind www.nytimes.com/2025/07/22/o...

“At the bottom of the president’s foreign-policy vision is a curious void. Mr. Trump is famously all about putting American interests first. Yet he has never figured out what he thinks America’s most basic interests are,” Stephen Wertheim writes.

Trump gets way too much credit for talking about peace without delivering it. (And much of what he says — "peace through strength," no nation-building wars — is nothing new.) Full podcast here: youtu.be/TvXCbfwQfKM?...

President Trump governs by instinct – and those instincts are “unconventional,” says @stephenwertheim.bsky.social, but a lack of a coherent strategy isn’t an asset in today’s complex geopolitical structure. Stephen explained on @morningjoe-msnbc.bsky.social 👇

I joined Morning Joe to discuss Trump's failure to end wars and avoid new ones — the standard he set for himself in his inaugural address.

Well-written, cogent, and articulate. “At the bottom of the president’s foreign-policy vision is a curious void. Trump is famously all about putting American interests first. Yet he has never figured out what he thinks America’s most basic interests are,” Stephen Wertheim writes.

“At the bottom of the president’s foreign-policy vision is a curious void. Mr. Trump is famously all about putting American interests first. Yet he has never figured out what he thinks America’s most basic interests are,” Stephen Wertheim writes.

In @nytopinion.nytimes.com “At the bottom of the president’s foreign-policy vision is a curious void. Mr. Trump is famously all about putting American interests first. Yet he has never figured out what he thinks America’s most basic interests are,” Stephen Wertheim writes.

Wed. guest list: Mike Barnicle, Ali Vitali, Ryan Reilly, Lisa Rubin, David Ignatius, Steve Rattner, Jonathan Martin, Susan Page, State Rep. James Talarico, Secy. Scott Bessent, Dave Baszucki, Sen. Chris Coons, Rep. Jared Moskowitz, Andrew Ross Sorkin, María Teresa Kumar, Stephen Wertheim

Excellent critique of American — and especially now Trumpian — foreign policy by Stephen Wertheim in the New York Times. Trump Is a Situational Man in a Structural Bind www.nytimes.com/2025/07/22/o...

“At the bottom of the president’s foreign-policy vision is a curious void. Mr. Trump is famously all about putting American interests first. Yet he has never figured out what he thinks America’s most basic interests are.” www.nytimes.com/2025/07/22/o...

This is excellent www.nytimes.com/2025/07/22/o...

Where in the world are US troops deployed? This map shows the location of US servicemembers in foreign countries and US territories. Each dot represents 50 people. 🧵

Six months into his term, President Trump doesn’t have a coherent vision on foreign policy, writes @stephenwertheim.bsky.social. In a field of allies – and adversaries – who do, that’s an obstacle to the peace he promised. More from Stephen in @nytimes.com: www.nytimes.com/2025/07/22/o...

In @nytopinion.nytimes.com, I write that Trump is failing to be a peacemaker. He is not on track to reduce America’s military involvement in the world and is keeping the United States in a position that invites more wars, potentially much larger ones. Gift link: www.nytimes.com/2025/07/22/o...

"America’s closest allies never wished to form an anti-China bloc before Trump took office. Now he’s offering most of them slimmer benefits at greater risk", writes Stephen Wertheim. www.ft.com/content/b324...

FT: A new cold war with China won’t help the US www.ft.com/content/b324...

A new cold war with China won’t help the US https://on.ft.com/3ICzAmV | opinion

It's easy to criticize Trump for ceding competitive ground to China. It's harder to reckon with the limits of American power in the world after Trump — where a cold war posture toward Beijing will be less warranted and less feasible. My thoughts in @financialtimes.com: www.ft.com/content/b324...

Great fun to discuss Andrew Preston's important new book on the American origins of "national security." Thanks to @quincyinst.bsky.social for hosting. www.youtube.com/live/6V7gvDA...

@stephenwertheim.bsky.social is a historian of U.S. foreign policy. Speaking to PÚBLICO, he says he cannot recall — at least since the Cold War — a U.S. administration “staffed by people with such widely divergent views on what America’s basic role in the world should be.”

I look forward to discussing Andrew Preston's important new book, Total Defense: The New Deal and the Origins of National Security, on July 15, hosted by @quincyinst.bsky.social: quincyinst.org/events/book-...