Once it was clear on early Wednesday morning that Donald Trump had become the president-elect, America’s allies raced to congratulate him.
The first to reach out was French President Emmanuel Macron, saying he was “ready to work together” with Trump. Macron and Trump had a fluctuating relationship during Trump’s first term; the two got along on a personal level but frequently clashed over issues like tariffs.
The UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer called Trump’s win “historic” and highlighted America’s close relationship with Great Britain. The left-wing Starmer is in a particularly tricky situation: back in 2018, Starmer’s now-foreign minister said Trump was a “neo-Nazi-sympathizing sociopath.”
Germany’s Olaf Scholz said that Germany and America have “[worked] together successfully for a long time.” With Germany effectively leading the EU, Trump’s win prompted their Foreign Affairs Minister to declare that Europeans must now take on even greater responsibility for security policy.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni congratulated Trump, as well as Elon Musk, crediting her “friend” with helping secure the win.
Meloni was just one of a growing group of populist-right figures who had kind words to say about Trump. Argentina’s Javier Milei, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, and El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele all had high praise for the president-elect.
While right-wing leaders may be more content with Trump’s win than their left-wing counterparts, their interests won’t always align.
For example, Meloni has been a massive supporter of NATO remaining unified, a stalwart supporter of Ukraine, and recently placed an arms embargo on Israel. All of those policies may clash with Trump’s upcoming administration.
Likewise, Orbán’s Hungary has maintained a close relationship with China’s Xi Jinping and has taken around $16 billion of Chinese investment. Trump, who views China as America’s number one threat, is unlikely to look favorably on that investment.
America’s Asian allies are also congratulating Trump while holding their breath. The Philippines, who have faced increasingly brazen Chinese aggression in the South China Sea, believe that Trump will commit to supporting them against their communist neighbor.
Vietnam, which has sought to deepen ties with the US while maintaining open discussions with China, likewise congratulated Trump. However, they are concerned that a new US-Chinese trade war could damage their exports.
