* World is watching as Trump enters White House
* His domestic and foreign policy moves will be closely watched
* As yet uncertain how his moves will affect US-GCC relations
Donald J Trump will be officially inaugurated as the 45th president of the United States on Friday.
Trump’s election campaign was mired in controversy and the same could be said of his statements and decisions after his surprise win, leading up to the day he takes office.
It goes without saying that the world is watching closely for the first moves he makes as commander-in-chief.
The world, including the MENA region, is particularly looking at Trump’s first 100 days, as he has already made remarks on what his first priorities would be.
In-house
These include pulling the US out of free-trade deals, reducing environmental protections, establishing a cyber defence team and probably even cancelling Obamacare – and all of this is just his domestic policy.
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The world at large
Internationally, although his foreign policy has not been laid out yet, Trump has spoken about renegotiating the nuclear deal with Iran and supporting Syria’s regime and its allies in fighting ISIS.
The latter also means eliminating support to what America has been referring to as “moderate opposition” fighting the regime on the ground. These are just two of several remarks Trump has made about many countries.
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Where does the GCC stand?
Another area that is at stake is his relationship with the GCC nations, long-term allies of the United States.
Upon his victory, several countries in the MENA region reacted. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi was the first to telephone Trump to congratulate him on his victory in the election. Al Sisi said he hoped Trump’s tenure would bring in a new era of closer ties with Washington.
(President Donald Trump: Middle East leaders react)
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, congratulated the then-Republican candidate as he soundly defeated his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton in the hotly contested elections.
Others had different, less excited reactions. The Wall Street Journal has quoted Lebanon’s interior minister, Nohad Machnouk, as saying that Trump would unleash “political chaos”.
“I don’t see tomorrow that, with a new American president, the American sun will shine again positively on the Middle East,” the minister added.
The region – and the world– is yet to see whether Trump will deliver on his promises and follow through on his remarks after he officially takes office.
As of now, all we can do is to wait and watch.
The post Trump takes office tomorrow: What should MENA expect? appeared first on AMEInfo.
