During his first 100 days in office, U.S. President Donald Trump has announced policies that potentially have dramatic implications for international law. His statements regarding annexation of Greenland, Canada, and Panama, his suggestions that the US should take over Gaza, imposition of tariffs against longstanding allies, the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, the WHO, and the Human Rights Council, and the apparent comprehensive review of ratified treaties, all suggest great skepticism of multilateralism, international institutions, and international law. From a European perspective, it appears that the Trump administration will respect international law only if it affirms its “America First” policy. What role, if any, does international law play in the Trump administration’s transactional approach to U.S. foreign policy? Can we expect the U.S. to respect its international legal obligations?
Steven R. Ratner is the Bruno Simma Collegiate Professor of Law at the University of Michigan, USA. His research expertise spans many fields of public international law, including war and peace, human rights, foreign investment, the United Nations, territorial and ethnic-based disputes, and business and human rights. From 2009 to 2021, he was a member of the U.S. State Department’s Advisory Committee on International Law. He has also served on UN expert bodies investigating human rights abuses in Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and Ethiopia, as well as spent time working at the ICRC and OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities.