This article is from The Washington Post:
A presidential election in the United States is an international event. For decades, the question of who occupies the White House has had a direct bearing on the shape of the global economy, on the turbulent politics of democracies nearby, and on the conflicts roiling societies thousands of miles away. As the United States approaches what may be its most consequential vote in decades, The Washington Post’s Today’s WorldView column took a look at what is at stake for governments around the world.
In some places, the prospect of President Trump returning to power is unwelcome. His wrecking-ball approach to diplomacy — including tweeted threats and trashed treaties — disturbed traditional U.S. alliances. Trump’s embrace of far-right politics at home and his launch of trade wars abroad left many to question the future of the liberal world order. Putative adversaries, especially in China and Russia, see in a Trump second term the further fraying of 20th-century alliances and the possible acceleration of American decline on the world stage.
Though Trump’s challenger, former vice president Joe Biden, has promised a kind of restoration, most governments aren’t holding their breath. A Biden presidency may boost collective action on international challenges such as climate change and the coronavirus pandemic. But it won’t magically return the United States to an era of unquestioned American primacy, one that already seemed to be waning when Biden was last in office. Many people around the world watch the U.S. election more out of curiosity and sympathy for a troubled friend than concern about the fate of their own countries.
Read the full article here.
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