We need as many allies as we can get.

 

Yet, instead of building a global coalition to deal with international challenges, Donald Trump, JD Vance and Marco Rubio not only pick petty fights with our best allies but also withdraw from global partnerships. The Trump/Vance administration has withdrawn from major international agreements like the Iranian nuclear deal, the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, the Open Skies Treaty, the Paris Climate Accord, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, World Health Organization, and organizations within the United Nations system including its Human Rights Council, its Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization, and its Relief and Works Agency. In January 2026 alone, they pulled us out of 66 multilateral organizations, 31 of which are entities associated with the United Nations.

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This makes ZERO sense. To win the global game, we must use every tool in our arsenal. This means we need to understand that, far from being a drag on us, multilateral international institutions – much like positive relationships with our allies – are, to use a military term, force multipliers – meaning, they magnify our strengths and allow us to leverage our investments, advancements, and safety. It’s a stone-cold fact: There is strength in numbers, plain and simple.

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If most of the world created a unified block under the leadership of America, China, for example, would have little choice but to come around on things like shady trade practices because, if they don’t, they will be isolated and that simply does not work for their ambitious global plans. To be a legitimate, fully accepted international player, China must be held accountable and forced to be transparent, modernize its trading practices, protect intellectual property, and allow better access for foreign business. Ironically, if we play our cards right, China’s thirst for world domination is the very thing that can help us ultimately keep them in line.