Experts are warning that the US President may try to divert attention away from his crushing elections massacre by becoming even more aggressive on foreign policy
Donald Trump’s devastating midterm election defeat has backed him into a corner. The US President, whose Republican party controlled the Senate and the House until Tuesday (Nov 3), has had both ripped away from him by a country that appears fed up of their leader.
In the past, Trump has looked to meet fire with fire, and experts are warning that this latest humiliation could see him lash out at any number of targets.
While the Iran war has been nothing short of a disaster for Trump, previous foreign interventions in places like Venezuela have seen his popularity spike.
Foreign policy expert Daniel DePetris, writing for MS NOW, warned that Trump’s military ambitions could become even more extreme now that voters have had their say at the ballot box.
He wrote: “Trump’s foreign policy, already bellicose, could soon be even more unhinged.”
And Benjamin Radd, a US foreign policy expert at UCLA, previously told The Straits Times that Trump would be prepared to follow through on his threats if the circumstances suited him.
He said: “If he senses a political opportunity, domestic support, congressional cover, international apathy or lack of consensus, he will act on his words, as we’ve seen.”
Here are three places experts believe could face further American military action.
Iran
Trump’s war with Iran has now dragged into its ninth month, despite the President initially suggesting the conflict would be over in just four to six weeks.
The US has imposed a naval blockade on Iranian oil exports, while tensions remain high around the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important shipping routes.
But Tehran has refused to accept Washington’s peace terms, raising fears that Trump could dramatically escalate the conflict.
DePetris warned: “A more expansive U.S. air war is plausible now, though it’s unlikely renewed warfighting would bring the United States closer to victory.”
He added: “Trump’s rhetoric notwithstanding, U.S. strategy has failed to force Tehran into a more lenient negotiating position.”
Cuba
The communist island nation has so often found itself at loggerheads with the US, and some fear it could once again find itself in Trump’s crosshairs as Washington ramps up pressure on Havana.
The US has already imposed brutal economic sanctions and a fuel embargo, pushing the country into crisis.
Although the Cuban government has introduced some economic reforms, it has refused to totally bow to Trump’s demands for all out political change.
DePetris suggests that military intervention could become a genuine possibility.
He wrote: “Regime change at gunpoint is not out of the question.”
He also pointed to reports that the US Army Reserve has been examining how many troops could be made available for a potential operation in Cuba.
The Americas
Trump could also double down on his controversial military campaign against drug cartels across Latin America.
American forces have already launched deadly strikes on boats suspected of carrying drugs, while US troops have supported lethal operations against criminal organisations in Ecuador.
Experts now fear the campaign could soon move from sea to land, with Colombia among the countries where American military involvement could expand.
DePetris warned: “It’s possible that boat strikes could evolve into land strikes.”
He added: “The U.S. military has moved surveillance and strike drones from Africa to the Western Hemisphere, in part to map out where the drug cartels and criminal groups are hiding. The writing is on the wall.”
However, not every expert believes Trump will go that far.
Fonseca previously told Foreign Policy: “I don’t see it deploying the military unilaterally in places like Mexico or Colombia.”