Fareed Zakaria

Look, I don't think that it is a sign of strength to go around bullying smaller countries and forcing them to say things that are often rhetorical concessions, you know, get everyone to call it the Gulf of America. The Panamanians are a good example.

Look, I don't think that it is a sign of strength to go around bullying smaller countries and forcing them to say things that are often rhetorical concessions, you know, get everyone to call it the Gulf of America. The Panamanians are a good example.

The guy who's running Panama now is a very pro-American conservative, and he's now been humiliated and made to, you know, mouth some kind of nonsense that allows Trump to claim he got a victory. Same thing happened with Canada and Mexico.

The guy who's running Panama now is a very pro-American conservative, and he's now been humiliated and made to, you know, mouth some kind of nonsense that allows Trump to claim he got a victory. Same thing happened with Canada and Mexico.

So you could tactically say there are some cases where they didn't handle it well. I, for many, many months, was criticizing the Biden administration on the Russia-Ukraine front. I mean, I thought that it was important to get more realistic. On Israel, it's a particular dynamic that you well know.

So you could tactically say there are some cases where they didn't handle it well. I, for many, many months, was criticizing the Biden administration on the Russia-Ukraine front. I mean, I thought that it was important to get more realistic. On Israel, it's a particular dynamic that you well know.

Which is that for a Democratic president, it is very hard to push the Israelis to do anything because they know they can outflank a Democrat by going directly to Congress, by going directly to essentially to Republicans. Bibi Netanyahu did that to Barack Obama, who's a much more skilled Democrat. politician and negotiator than Joe Biden was.

Which is that for a Democratic president, it is very hard to push the Israelis to do anything because they know they can outflank a Democrat by going directly to Congress, by going directly to essentially to Republicans. Bibi Netanyahu did that to Barack Obama, who's a much more skilled Democrat. politician and negotiator than Joe Biden was.

And when Obama tried to push him on the Iran nuclear thing, Bibi just did an end run around Obama, went to Washington, got the Republicans to invite him to give a joint speech to the joint session of Congress and completely tied Obama in knots on that one. So that is a particular problem. But I agree with you that tactically, there are some places where you could push harder.

And when Obama tried to push him on the Iran nuclear thing, Bibi just did an end run around Obama, went to Washington, got the Republicans to invite him to give a joint speech to the joint session of Congress and completely tied Obama in knots on that one. So that is a particular problem. But I agree with you that tactically, there are some places where you could push harder.

But I think if you ask me which philosophy is the right one for the United States to have, I think it's the one that has built these alliance structures in the system for 80 years by not viewing this as a series of transactions, but as a relationship. Trump is a transaction guy. Think about every real estate deal he's ever done.

But I think if you ask me which philosophy is the right one for the United States to have, I think it's the one that has built these alliance structures in the system for 80 years by not viewing this as a series of transactions, but as a relationship. Trump is a transaction guy. Think about every real estate deal he's ever done.

At the end of the day, the person he does the deal with never wants to deal with him again. I mean, that is basically one of the leitmotifs of Trump's business career. He screws you in the deal and then moves on, and the next time around, screws somebody else. But that's not what American foreign policy has been built on.

At the end of the day, the person he does the deal with never wants to deal with him again. I mean, that is basically one of the leitmotifs of Trump's business career. He screws you in the deal and then moves on, and the next time around, screws somebody else. But that's not what American foreign policy has been built on.

It's been built on these alliances and these relationships that have endured now for almost a century. And by the way, very few countries have managed that. So Trump, by strong arming a few people, a few of these countries will get in the short term a better deal. Again, we're very powerful. We're very rich. But is that going to build power? real trust for the next 40, 50 years? I don't think so.

It's been built on these alliances and these relationships that have endured now for almost a century. And by the way, very few countries have managed that. So Trump, by strong arming a few people, a few of these countries will get in the short term a better deal. Again, we're very powerful. We're very rich. But is that going to build power? real trust for the next 40, 50 years? I don't think so.

It's going to give Trump a few good headlines. And by the way, on the Gaza thing, I think it's important to remember because I've spent a lot of time in the Middle East over the last nine months or so. I've been to Saudi Arabia four times. They were always willing to pay for the reconstruction.

It's going to give Trump a few good headlines. And by the way, on the Gaza thing, I think it's important to remember because I've spent a lot of time in the Middle East over the last nine months or so. I've been to Saudi Arabia four times. They were always willing to pay for the reconstruction.

The idea that Trump's bizarre Gaza proposal has gotten the Saudis and the Egyptians to be ready to be involved is not true. The issue has always been who will govern Gaza. And that was, you know, the Israelis say it can't be any Hamas involvement. The Arabs say, look, if it's going to be no Hamas involvement, then you have to allow the Palestinian Authority to do it. And the Israelis say no.

The idea that Trump's bizarre Gaza proposal has gotten the Saudis and the Egyptians to be ready to be involved is not true. The issue has always been who will govern Gaza. And that was, you know, the Israelis say it can't be any Hamas involvement. The Arabs say, look, if it's going to be no Hamas involvement, then you have to allow the Palestinian Authority to do it. And the Israelis say no.