A second Donald Trump presidency could lead US allies to pursue ‘more independent policies’: analysts

US allies and partners are nervous about Donald Trump’s positions on the South China Sea, the Korean peninsula and Ukraine, and might pursue more independent policies while boosting their mutual ties this year, Indo-Pacific experts said on Tuesday.

American leadership under Trump, the prohibitive favourite for the Republican presidential nomination this year, would bring about “significant changes” in the postures adopted by US allies on issues like nuclearisation or their own defence, according to Charles Edel of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.