Inside the unravelling of US diplomacy under Trump

When Donald Trump warned Iran on April 7 that “a whole civilisation will die tonight,” a European diplomat in Washington said his government wanted an urgent answer to a chilling question: Was the US president contemplating the use of a nuclear weapon? Across Europe and Asia, the concern went beyond whether Trump’s apocalyptic threat was real or bluster. One fear, the diplomat said, was that Russia could seize the moment to justify similar threats in Ukraine, triggering a nuclear crisis on two continents. European governments immediately sought reassurance through a traditional channel: the US State Department. But according to the diplomat, officials there gave an unsettling response: they didn’t know what Trump meant or what actions his words might portend. The previously unreported episode points to a historic breakdown in American diplomacy. At a moment when a uniquely unpredictable US president is rattling markets and capitals with dramatic pronouncements, governments around the world are scrambling for clarity, only to discover that their usual points of contact — at US embassies or inside Washington — are missing, mute or out of the loop. At least half of America’s 195 ambassadorial posts worldwide are now vacant. Margaret MacMillan, an Oxford University professor of international history, said the Trump administration is eroding America’s capacity to understand the world it operates in, raising the risk of global instability. “We’re not going to be able to use diplomacy as we have often done before: to build relationships, get agreements that benefit both sides, and avert and end wars.” The Trump administration rejects the notion of a breakdown, saying the changes have strengthened US diplomacy and streamlined decision-making. “The president has the right to determine who represents the American people and interests around the world,” said Tommy Pigott, a State Department spokesperson. This account of America’s diplomatic upheaval is based on interviews with