Mike Pompeo, President Trump’s likely nominee to be the next Secretary of State, should be seen as a signal that the administration of President Trump is about to paint China as the new public enemy number one.

Regarding China, Pompeo is likely to offer more of the same mixed approach that has thus far characterized the Trump administration’s policy. On the one hand, Pompeo has endorsed the notion that China is an economic threat to the United States, and on the other hand, Pompeo has spoken positively of Xi Jinping, particularly with reference to China’s role in helping to place pressure on North Korea.

Trump has made a mess of US diplomacy. How has he gotten away with it?

The evidence is clear. Donald Trump’s presidency has eroded America’s soft power. Only 30% of people recently polled by Gallup in 134 countries held a favorable view of the United States under Trump’s leadership, a drop of almost 20 points since Barack Obama’s presidency.

Washington’s current Asia-Pacific strategy is financially unsustainable. Instead of trying to organize a containment system, Washington should focus on advancing its few serious interests, such as freedom of navigation. Otherwise the U.S. should step back and leave China’s neighbors free to respond to whatever they believe necessary.

Dividing the world into camps of “free societies” and “repressive regimes”, and proposing to collaborate with countries of similar values to deal with “repression”, sends a message that threatens to split the international community.

The U.S. now tries to expand the problems, increasing the geographical competition and threats. This may drag China-U.S. relations into treacherous waters.

When debating possible U.S. limited strikes on North Korea, let us not forget the inherent unpredictability of war.

How has US foreign policy changed under Trump? The most revolutionary part of Trump’s foreign policy in the past year is his attitude and actions towards global governance, multilateral regimes, institutions and agreements.

The US National Security Strategy was very revealing.