HALIFAX – Views of president-elect Donald Trump on Day 2 of an international security forum swung between worries he’s already damaged European alliances to one Republican Senator claiming he may usher in economic growth.
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The forum is the first major international gathering of policy analysts, American politicians and a number of defence ministers since Trump won the U.S. election, and speculation about his agenda has dominated talk at the Halifax International Security Forum.
At the opening seminar, International Institute for Strategic Studies chair Francois Heisbourg said Trump’s election comments suggesting his support for defending NATO members depends on their military spending is the kind of thinking that creates divisions in historic alliances.
Foreign Affairs editor Gideon Rose called it “mind boggling” that discussions among the delegates includes such topics as whether the leader of the United States was serious when he called for the use of water boarding torture.
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Meanwhile, in a separate panel, Alaska Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan urged the audience to move on from Trump’s past pronouncements and understand that many Americans see his election as “an opportunity” to improve the country’s economy.
Delaware Sen. Chris Coons, a democrat who has referred to Trump as a “vulgarian” during the campaign, said he expects American legislators and allies will make compelling cases to the new administration to deter it from pursuing policies — such as a renewal of water boarding — that ultimately damage his country’s interests.
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