BTS’ Jin runs into love interest at Singapore’s National Gallery in new teaser video for upcoming song
Jin, a part of BTS, appears to have shot a music video in Singapore, which we believe we were correct to say. The 32-year-old dropped the official teaser trailer for his upcoming music video Don’t Say You Love Me, which features a well-known Singaporei icon: The National Gallery, on Tuesday night ( May 13 ).
The trailer picture comes shortly after the release of a game that makes it necessary for fans to enter the correct string of numbers to” call” Jin and unlock a photo.  ,
Some of the images that have been unlocked have Singapore landmarks, including Gardens by the Bay and the Singapore Flyer, which sparked rumors that Jin’s future little song, Echo, might have Singapore in some way.
Partners Group acquires Asia data centre operator | FinanceAsia
Partners Group, a data center technician based in Singapore and the Philippines, has acquired Digital Halo from Partners Group. The secret capital investment said it will invest about$ 400 million to help with Digital Halo’s rise along with ARCH Capital Management, which will continue to be a majority investor.
Plaza Media Limited. All trademarks are reserved.
IFC, BlackRock on how infrastructure is critical to Apac’s clean energy: Ecosperity | FinanceAsia
Although governments and businesses in Asia-Pacific ( Apac ) have made significant progress in clean energy investments, a significant funding gap persists to threaten their plans to transition to clean energy.
Capitol Media Limited All rights reserved
8 Singapore indie bookstores join forces to launch Bookshop.sg, a one-stop site for book lovers
Eddie Lim, Thryft’s co-founder and CEO, commented,” This partnership highlights the many creative approaches bookstores these are bringing great books to the people.”
Ho TingXuan, Thryft’s financial manager and Bookshop task manager, is Sg continued,” With this program, we hope to highlight and develop Singapore’s reading lifestyle.”
The Singaporean independent bookshops, in this together, is the platform’s phrase, which also aims to encourage further collaboration between participating bookstores.
With this first cooperation, all producers, booksellers, readers, and writers can quickly come together to discuss, explore, share our problems, and come up with solutions, according to Tan Waln Ching, chairman of City Book Room, a store and publisher with a focus on Chinese books.
The mood was shared by Ibrahim Tahir, the director of Wardah Books, an Islamist shop in Kampong Glam.
He claimed that” the platform is secondary.” The platform’s ability to co-operate with book sellers is its main goal. We are swayed from capitalism’s brutal economical design.
When we understand that we can have a unity of purpose, we can accomplish many different goals for the browsing field in this case.
Bookshop. Sg has eight locations now, but the company plans to soon allowed more independent booksellers and publishers from Singapore.
The team will also be hosting a physical exhibition of curated booksellers ‘ books, along with a booksellers ‘ panel at Thryft Hub at 120 Lower Delta Road on May 31 to celebrate the launch. Registering for the occasion through Bookshop is open to all interested parties. Instagram of Sg  ,
There’s a musical box wonderland in the heart of the CBD – meet the duo behind this small shop spreading joy
On added that” we’re happy that the tree jewels sell out immediately.” They are inspired by this to create additional designs, such as the castle ornaments, which are based on the duo’s recent trip to Europe.
The bubble home, one of On’s most well-known creations, was inspired by the 2009 Pixar video Up. He gesturing to the different variations of the adornment,” This is 100 % made in our studio” continued him.  ,
Additionally, you’ll find a ton of Totoro, Ponyo, and other well-known Sanrio characters in one spot. The” Studio Ghibli” films in turn influenced us to make our ornaments and patterns. The shows are so full of imagination and detail,” On said.
The Little Prince served as another source of inspiration for the designs. What is essential is invisible to the eye, Koh said, citing the book,” It is only with the spirit that one can see rightfully.” You’ll have to follow your heart to the most significant, wonderful things in life. I make an effort to discover things this way.
On and Koh were immediately perplexed when asked how many jewelry designs Okdodoo offers in full. ” We have a few thousand distinct people,” say our clients. We’ve never taken any of them into account”! Koh laughed, he said.
After some reflection, the two came to the conclusion that 30 % of Okdodoo’s ornaments are modified, and 40 % are entirely made in-house.
” We frequently receive insufficient designs from our providers, both local and elsewhere,” Koh said. Finally, we add our finishing details. For instance, he explained that the legs of a bench can be taken off and used as a camera for a camera, and the seat may be converted into a small table.
The duo recently collaborated with a third party to create their 3D-printed renditions of Singapore’s iconic landmarks like Marina Bay Sands, Gardens by the Bay, ArtScience Museum, Toa Payoh’s lion playground, and of course, the Merlion.
India-Pakistan conflict: How real is the risk of nuclear war?
Getty Images: CorbisThere were no ultimatums or dark buttons in the most recent India-Pakistan stand-off.
The country’s most dangerous shadow was slowly evoked by the period of military retaliation, veiled signals, and timely global mediation. The situation didn’t turn into a nuclear war, but it did serve as a reminder of how fast tensions can bring that ghost to light.
Even scientists have modelled how easily things could unravel. A 2019 study by a global team of scientists opened with a nightmare scenario where a terrorist attack on India’s parliament in 2025 triggers a nuclear exchange with Pakistan.
Six years later, a real-world issue, which was contained by a US-brokered peace on Saturday, sparked concerns about a full-fledged issue. Additionally, it brought back nervous memories of how delicate stability in the area can become.
Pakistan retaliated physically while announcing a National Command Authority (NCA ) meeting, a calculated warning of its nuclear capability, as the issue grew. The NCA regulates the country’s radioactive arsenal’s usage and power. We may not know whether this action was intended as a symbolic, tactical, or real update. Additionally, it occurred just as Marco Rubio, the US’s secretary of state, apparently intervened to stop the loop.
According to President Trump, the US didn’t really negotiate a peace; it averted a “nuclear turmoil.” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated in an address to the nation on Monday: “[ There is no compassion for nuclear coercion. Nuclear challenges won’t intimidate India.
Modi continued,” Any extremist safe haven operating under this pretext may face specific and decisive attacks.”
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute ( Sipri), India and Pakistan each possess about 170 nuclear weapons. Sipri estimated that there were 12,121 atomic weapons worldwide as of January 2024. About 9,585 of these were kept in military supplies, with 3,904 deliberately serving, or 60 more than the prior year. More than 8,000 nuclear arms are produced by the US and Russia up.
According to Christopher Clary, a safety affairs specialist at the University at Albany in the US, the bulk of India’s and Pakistan’s deployed stockpiles is found in their land-based weapon troops, though both are developing atomic chords capable of delivering weapons by land, air, and water.
” India likely has a larger air foot than Pakistan (aircraft capable of delivering nuclear weapons ). Although the naval leg of Pakistan is the least well-known, he claimed,” It is reasonable to think that India’s marine foot is more developed and capable than Pakistan’s sea-based nuclear power.”
One reason, according to Mr. Clary, is that Pakistan has not yet invested the “time or income” required to build a nuclear submarine, giving India a” clear subjective” advantage in terms of naval nuclear capability.
Pakistan has not officially declared an established nuclear doctrine since testing atomic weapons in 1998.
In contrast, following its own assessments in 1998, India implemented a no-first-use plan. However, this attitude has begun to soften. In 2003, India granted the country the right to employ nuclear weapons in response to natural or chemical attacks, efficiently allowing for its first use in certain circumstances.
When then-defence minister Manohar Parrikar suggested India doesn’t think “bound” by the policy, which raised concerns about its long-term viability, another misunderstanding emerged in 2016. ( Parrikar made it clear that this was his own opinion. ) )
AFP via Getty ImagesAlthough Pakistan’s nuclear threshold is still unclear, Khalid Kidwai, the next head of the NCA’s Strategic Plans Division, laid out four purple lines in 2001: major territorial loss, the destruction of significant military assets, economic strangulation, or political destabilization.
Pervez Musharraf, the then-president, stated in 2002 that “nuclear munitions are aimed solely at India” and would only be used if” the very presence of Pakistan as a status” was in danger.
Previous US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed in his autobiography that he was shocked when he woke up at night to talk to an unknown” American rival” who feared Pakistan was planning to employ nuclear weapons during the 2019 stand-off with India.
A senior official, who was quoted by Pakistani media at the time, issued a stark warning to India:” I hope you know what the [National Command Authority ] means and what it constitutes.” I promised to amaze you. Delay for that wonder: You have chosen to go on war without knowing what would happen to the region’s peace and security. “
Pakistan’s then-foreign director Shamshad Ahmed warned that the nation do not “hesitate any tool” to support its territory during the Kargil War in 1999. Decades later, US Ambassador Bruce Riedel made the revelation that Pakistan was preparing its nuclear arsenal for a potential implementation.
AFP via Getty ImagesHowever, both sides have skepticism about these statements.
Ajay Bisaria, a former Indian large director to Pakistan, wrote in his autobiography that Pompeo exaggerated both the US’s part in calming the conflict in 2019 and the risk of nuclear escalation. There was no actual trigger for even an inherent nuclear threat, claim Muslim analysts, and during Kargil, Pakistan “knew the Indian Air Force doesn’t mix into its territory.”
The world is reminded that any conflict is escalate, and the stakes are higher with India and Pakistan because of the nuclear overhang. Ejaz Haider, a defense analyst from Lahore, told the BBC that this does not indicate either aspect is constantly threatening nuclear usage.
However, nuclear increase may also occur accidentally. This could be caused by human error, thieves, terrorists, system problems, bad information from observatories, and fragile officials, according to Prof. Alan Robock of Rutgers University, the lead author of the groundbreaking 2019 report by a global team of scientists, to the BBC.
India fired a nuclear-capable cruise missile unintentionally into Pakistani territory in March 2022, traveling 124 kilometers ( 77 miles ) into Pakistan before crashing, causing alleged damage to civilian property. India claimed for two days that it had used the military line or made a speech in public. According to experts, the incident may have sprang into major conflict if it had happened during heightened tensions. Three air force officers were fired by India’s government for the “accidental firing of a missile” ( Months later ). )
However, according to Mr. Clary, the likelihood of a nuclear war between India and Pakistan is still “relatively low.”
The risks of nuclear usage are comparatively minor and reasonable, he said, as long as there isn’t significant ground combat along the border.
The “use it or lose it” problem is exacerbated by the possibility that the army will overrun your floor positions in ground fight. The phrase” Use it or lose it” refers to the strain a nuclear-armed nation might think when it launches its weaponry before an adversary uses them as a second strike. )
AFP via Getty ImagesAccording to Sumit Ganguly, a senior fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, “neither India nor Pakistan wants to be compared to being the first country to violate the post-Hiroshima atomic taboo.”
Any part that uses nuclear weapons had, he added, face significant retaliation and suffer inacceptable casualties, Mr. Ganguly told the BBC.
India and Pakistan both appear to be expanding their radioactive army at the same time.
According to The Nuclear Notebook, which was conducted by the Federation of American Professionals ‘ Nuclear Information Project, Pakistan’s nuclear army could have 200 weapons by the late 2020s due to new supply networks in development, four uranium units, and growing uranium enrichment.
According to the International Panel on Fissile Materials, India reportedly had about 680 kg of weapons-grade plutonium in its early 2023 years, making it capable of producing between 130 and 210 nuclear warheads.
Both parties have so far managed to prevent a catastrophic turn into nuclear conflict despite numerous crises and close calls. The “deterrent” is still in place. Umer Farooq, an analyst based in Islamabad, writes that all Pakistanis did was use counter-conventional strikes of their own in response to conventional strikes.
Despite having nuclear weapons, the presence of a constant undercurrent of risk, one that cannot be completely ruled out, no matter how well-versed the leadership or how restrained the intentions are.
There is always an unacceptable level of danger when nuclear weapons are involved, according to John Erath, senior policy director at the non-profit Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, who spoke to the BBC.
The risk is small because the Indian and Pakistani governments have handled these situations in the past. Even a small risk is too great for nuclear weapons, though. “
Emergency or not? How to tell when your child needs urgent medical care
Parents should become familiar with the most basic over-the-counter medications, such as those for illness, blocked or runny nose, or diarrhea, suggested Dr. Ho. These symptoms can frequently be properly treated at home, especially if they appear in the middle of the night,” she said.
However, there should be some good-looking red flags and exclusions.
If your baby is under three months old and has a temperature of 38 degrees Fahrenheit or higher, or if they exhibit symptoms of irritability like frequent crying, poor feeding, or body that appears pale or tan. This is because, according to Dr. Pandey, kids are at a higher risk of severe bacterial infection.
A fever lasting longer than five days should also be evaluated to see if a subsequent bacterial infection complicates the first popular fever.
A temperature that exceeds 41 degrees Celsius might indicate a serious illness. However, according to Dr. Pandey, the top of a disease does not always correlate with the child’s illness’s severity.
She further explained that if a child has a high disease but their energy levels and taste do not seem to improve between temperature spikes, they might need to see a family doctor. In contrast, children who have low-grade fever but who also have serious lethargy or dehydration should be rushed to the Children’s Emergency quickly.
In terms of micro symptoms, Dr. Ho argued that continual vomiting is more concerning than prolonged diarrhoea because it makes it more difficult for the kid to maintain a healthy body temperature. Check the urinary output of your child; at least three to four should be produced in 24 hours.
She advised distributing slowly, non-carbonated osmotic hydration fluids at the recommended rate of 30 minutes after vomiting. Seeking medical advice is advised if the baby is unable to retain liquid for more than three consecutive efforts and is beginning to become lethargic.
Also confused? Dr. Pandey suggested trying the robot company U-PAL, which advises caregivers on popular neonatal problems and when serious medical attention is required, on the KKH Urgent Paediatric Advice Line. It should not be used for pre-existing or serious health problems in babies because it is not a substitute for a doctor’s advice.
A PASSAGE RACE FOR CHILDREN AND PARENTS
The heartbeat of a billion: What Virat Kohli meant to India
Cricket author
Getty ImagesIndian cricket is in trouble and the recreational world is out of the woods as a result of Virat Kohli’s pension from the test series.
It comes on the feet of Rohit Sharma leaving a few days earlier, making it a double whammy for India who will be taking a difficult journey of England for a five-Test set without their two most expert bowlers.
Kohli made his pension people on Instagram, where he has more than 270 million subscribers.
As he explained to his irate fans,” I step aside from this file, it’s not easy – but it feels right.”
Since then, there has been a flood of homage for Kohli: from brother batsmen, present and future, old and young, as well as legends from other sports like tennis star Novak Djokovic and soccer player Harry Kane, which highlights the breadth and breadth of the superstar’s global charm.
In contrast to the judgment of others in the cricket creation, past India captain Dilip Vengsarkar, who was at the time the chairman of candidates, quickly tracked Kohli into international cricket after leading India to success in the Under-19 World Cup in 2008.
Many in the Indian bowling board thought he was very young, but he was consistently scoring in private matches, and Vengsarkar’s desire to succeed was palpable, he recalls.
An illustration of Kohli’s intense interest in the sport has a poignant quality. Kohli was playing his subsequent game for Delhi in the Ranji Trophy. His parents abruptly passed away along with his staff during a crisis. He returned after the death and scored a fierce 90.
Getty ImagesVengsarkar’s approving vision gave Kohli his International debut in 2009 with an ovative attention. He was the youngest part of India’s 2011 ODI World Cup winning crew under MS Dhoni at the age of 23. He made his West Indies Test comeback a few weeks after. After a disastrous tour of Australia and his place in danger, Kohli turned in a dark maiden century and not looked back. Within a few years, he established himself as the preeminent flour of his creation.
He was as dangerous as calcium on waters in his early years, but he was controversial and without a mild strength in his system. He never once feigned to face the most reputable critics, and he frequently indulged in on-field sneers that occasionally caused him to receive criticism.
Fortunately, this did not turn out to be his establishing characteristic in baseball. Another compelling aspect was provided by his powerful run-getting in a dashing style across platforms.
When Sachin Tendulkar, his idol, retired in 2013, Kohli ravenously grabbed the stick and began a remarkable career in bowling history, drawing unbridled ambition from his numerous talents.
He essentially wielded the pitcher like a Jedi, using his incredible skill and telling thrust to kill his foes. Combining his high-octane demeanor and scintillating batting to become a cult warrior, whose very existence ensured blockbuster box office appearances wherever he played.
Kohli wore his love on his sleeve all the time. He was often outgoing and extraordinary on the field, but over time, his misplaced angst turned into a fiery internal pursuit of excellence that propelled him to incredible heights.
They became the country’s most powerful power couple after getting married to movie star Anushka Sharma, giving them an even greater light.
In a way that speaks for itself, Kohli’s spectacular achievements, especially in the first generation of his profession, epitomized the emerging India of the 21st century: unwaveringly optimistic, unremittingly optimistic, willing to face the best in the world, and willing to face the best in the world.
His accomplishments in all styles are incredible.
He leads Tendulkar and Kumar Sangakarra in runs played in OD Is, but he has the best average ( 57.88 ) among batters who have played in more than 100 games. Tradition contains his remarkable ability to win ODI matches in the most gruesome work chases, with many of his 51 centuries occurring in these pursuits.
Getty ImagesHis run average and generations don’t rank him among the top 5, but he has become a legend with extraordinary knocks, including 82 hardly out in a heart-pounding, pulsating suit against Pakistan in the 2022 World Cup and a crucial 76 in the 2024 last against South Africa, which helped India win the title.
In Indian Premier League record, he also has the highest work record.
In all three forms, Kohli once averaged 50 or higher, which put him in the league’s top five players of all time, far outpacing Steve Smith, Kane Williamson, and Joe Root. The four were locked in a fascinating, long-running battle for the best bat position.
Kohli’s job experienced an illogical downturn when it appeared he would tear all bowling records. The stream of runs started to flood and the pandemic started to sputter. In his glitz, between 2014 and 2019, he had been irresistible, once netting six double ages in just 18 weeks.
His Test cricket common, which was 55 plus in 2019, fell to the current 46.75, which is the most severely affected by the drought of works. Kohli also lost the captain during this time, despite his unwavering support for his brilliant standing in global cricket.
With his final nine and 230 runs, Kohli finishes his Test job at the top of the Indians, trailing only Lee, Rahul Dravid, and Sunil Gavaskar, who all scored 50 or more centuries. However, judging him solely based on this test would reduce the significant influence he has had on this structure.
As commander, Kohli can pass Gavaskar, Tendulkar, and Dravid with ease. He won 40 of the 68 Test matches he started playing, making him the third most productive player in the genre. This assumes Alpine proportions in the American environment.
Greg Chappell, the original Australia captain, claims that Kohli’s energy, dirt, sense of purpose, and image were” transformational” for Indian cricket. In addition to Sourav Ganguly and M S Dhoni, Chaparl ranks him as the most powerful American skipper.
Ravi Shastri, who worked with Kohli for years and is previous India commander and chief coach, provides first-hand knowledge.
Shastri remarks that” Kolhasi transformed India into a fighting force,” particularly when playing abroad.
Getty ImagesShastri believes that his absence of ICC and IPL names is misleading as a measure of his captain prowess.
He put himself in the lead instead of serving as a back driver, and he always played to win, sought and nurtured fast bowlers to succeed globally, demanded higher intent and high fitness from all players.
India ranked in the top three in ICC positions in all forms almost constantly for seven decades when Kohli and Shastri worked together, which is extraordinary.
The most respected and considerable triumph of this time was the 2018 Test series victory over Australia for the first time ever.
Kohli had already stoked his own batting prowess with 692 plays in four Test matches in 2014-15 in Australia. He broke a previously unbreakable emotional challenge by acting as the team’s captain and flour in 2018. Kohli only played one game ( which was lost ) while he was on tour in Australia in 2020, when he returned home to the birth of his child. After breaking through the mental compass two years prior, India won the plastic in a dramatic see-saw series.
Kohli enjoyed a happy hunting trip to Australia in soon 2024, when he made his final stop there. In the first exam at Perth, he scored a decade with a sound. However, his form faltered dangerously, leading to single 190 runs in each of the five Tests.
It is questionable how much of this led to his retirement. Advancement, the dislike of being continually under severe scrutiny, wanting to get close to his youthful family, and other pervasive shenanigans that appear in Indian bowling have undoubtedly contributed.
Kohli coyly ends his Instagram retirement post.
“I’ll often smile when I look back on my Test career.” # 269 signing off, “he wrote.
In the previous ten and a half, the best adviser for the five-day style had vanished.
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UK soldier’s fall sparks fundraiser
B4.4 million plan prompts health bills
PUBLISHED: 14 Perhaps 2025 at 05: 59
A British man, age 21, is recovering from life-changing injury after falling from Na Mueang 2 Waterfall in Koh Samui, Surat Thani, prompting his girlfriend to build a £100,000 ( 4.4 million baht ) fundraising campaign to pay for his mounting medical bills and handle an urgent return to the UK.
Since the UK’s Daily Mirror news reported the incident on May 3, the situation has attracted the attention of the general public. Liam Gibson, a member of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Professionals ( REME), allegedly fell from the river while attempting to take a picture on April 12 and sustained severe injuries, according to the document.
The pair reportedly noticed the place being widely promoted on social media as a must-see area. It appeared to be a fun time away. But we didn’t realize the consequences until it was too late, his partner Lucy Burnett said.
In a Paypal appeal, Ms. Burnett described the tragic incident as” a life-changing incident in Thailand where he slipped off the edge while innocently taking a image.”
She claimed that her boyfriend, a British man, has been in the military for five years and has organized numerous charity events for different causes.
She continued,” We next had two days to wait for a rescue group in which Liam was in a horrifying condition with legs sticking out of his limbs, broken legs everywhere, completely shattered experience and forehead and bleeding out quickly”!
” It took the rescue team three hours to transport him down the mountain to the hospital once they had reached us.” When we arrived at the hospital, we discovered that he had broken his right arm, his left hand, his eye socket, cheekbone, head, and bones, and had several opened wounds to the spine on his left knee. He had also broken his right arm in three pieces.
He has since had three major surgeries, numerous blood transfusions, antibiotics, and medications, and has been in the hospital always since. He is still awaiting his main operation to repair his femur and allow him to eventually learn to walk once more.
Ms. Burnett has launched a GoFundMe fundraising campaign in an apparent bid to raise money to cover both his medical costs and the cost of a pilot jet.
We both did not want to make this GoFundMe, she wrote. But this is our final choice… He must pay this bill before leaving the hospital.
Mr. Gibson has received treatment at Bangkok Hospital in Samui, according to a nearby cause. According to the cause, Mr. Gibson’s lack of vacation insurance made his treatment and repatriation more difficult. Due to individual confidentiality, the hospital has never permitted press interviews or interviews.
At Na Mueang 2 Waterfall, there has been a horror before, but this is not the first day.
The site has experienced a number of fatalities in recent years, including two that occurred in 2019 and an American tourist in 2024. Both victims died after crossing safety barriers. The area is still popular with tourists looking for spectacular photos despite visible signage warning people against climbing the waterfall’s upper levels, according to the source.
More and more people are calling for stronger health measures, including restricting exposure to hazardous areas of the site or installing railings.
Asia without America, part 1: The cupboards are bare – Asia Times
Sometimes you can’t usually obtain what you want.
But if you try maybe
You’ll discover.
You get what you needThe rolling rocks
History has several solutions. Unsurprisingly firm plans can operate on a coin. ” There are years where little happens, and there are days where generations happen”, Vladimir Lenin wrote in 2017, his last year in captivity.
Or, as President Xi Jinping said at the Kremlin’s entrance after a meeting with Vladimir Putin in 2023,” Right now there are changes – the likes of which we haven’t seen for 100 years. Within reach of the press, President Xi subtly added,” and we are the types driving these changes up”.
We’re talking to you, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, so let’s not beat around the tree. The modifications that President Xi was referring to are the decline of America’s empire method and, along with it, the decline of the rules-based global order.
Every country may be prepared. The savviest players did front-run activities. It was an open invitation to wager on and join the “we” when President Xi said,” We are the people driving these modifications.”
Strong forth to 2025 and styles have just accelerated. In his following name, President Trump insulted weak-armed Panama, threatened to seize Greenland and Canada, and sparked a world trade war.
This is not 4D games, individuals. President Trump is hoping that the scattered pieces will magically arrange themselves in advantageous positions by using whatever remaining National power to blow over the game. It is also pure madness.  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,
In his book And Tomorrow the World: The Birth of US Global Supremacy, Stephen Wertheim tells the story of how, over just a few times preceding Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, organizations such as the Council on Foreign Relations and leaders such as President Franklin Roosevelt maneuvered America’s global position apart from uneasiness over foreign entanglements and towards global hegemony.
None of this, however, can be said loudly. As the new posture developed during and after World War II, it had to be buried in euphemisms like “liberal international order” and administered through neutered institutions including the World Bank/IMF ( 1944 ), the United Nations ( 1945 ), NATO ( 1949 ) and even the US Congress.
All of this contradicts the reputation that some foundation fathers hoped to leave behind for the young republic, which was happily separated from a fractured Europe by the Atlantic Ocean. In his farewell target, George Washington reportedly warned against involvement in foreign wars and dilemmas:
Why do we ensn’t we, by interweaving our life with that of any other region of Europe, find peace and prosperity in the shackles of Western passion, rivalry, interest, humor, or capriciousness?
Why forego the advantages of thus peculiar a position? Why abandon our personal quest to conquer foreign soil?
It is our true plan to steer clear of lasting partnerships with any part of the international world, so much, I mean, as we are now at liberty to do it, for let me not be understood as worthy of patronizing marriage to existing commitments.
The thinkers and leaders who advocated for American supremacy, in Wertheim’s opinion, were not acting in bad faith; they were also not lobbyists seeking a retirement position at Lockheed Martin. These were men genuinely fearful of a world where fascists controlled the Eurasian landmass. Wertheim writes:
Peace, however, came at an unprecedented price after Germany conquered France and briefly bestrode Europe. If the United States continues to use a hemispheric military posture, it could leave Europe to the worst Europeans and Asia to the worst Asians, totalitarian dictatorships that use industrial modernity to achieve armed subjugation.
After saving Europe and Asia from fascist domination in WWII ( or at least joining mop-up operations in act four ), the US lost no time declaring itself leader of the free world in the long twilight struggle against the Soviet Union. In his famous lengthy telegram, George Kennan wrote:
The main element of any United States policy toward the Soviet Union must be a long-term, patient but firm and vigilant containment of Russian expansive tendencies. The adroit and vigilant use of counterforce at a number of constantly shifting geographical and political points, corresponding to the shifts and maneuvers of Soviet policy, is something that can be constrained by the adroit and vigilant application of counterforce at a series of constantly shifting geographical and political points, which cannot be charmed or talked out of existence.
Primacy, it turns out, is a hard drug to quit. The US quickly established itself as permanent world leader under the Wolfowitz doctrine after the unexpected collapse of the Soviet Union and China, who voluntarily joined the American-led economic system.
The US must show the leadership necessary to establish and protect a new order that holds the promise of convincing potential competitors that they need not aspire to a greater role or pursue a more aggressive posture to protect their legitimate interests. In non-defense areas, we must take into account the needs of the advanced industrialized countries in a sufficient way to deter them from challenging our leadership or attempting to overturn the country’s established political and economic order. We must maintain the mechanism for deterring potential competitors from even aspiring to a larger regional or global role.
Around that time, “liberal international order” changed into “rules-based international order.”
After the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001, the US updated the Wolfowitz doctrine with the Bush doctrine, an aggressive foreign policy posture that assumed the right to preemptively eliminate – through military means – nascent threats before they fully materialize. George W. Bush said this at West Point’s graduation speech in 2002:
We cannot defend America and our friends by hoping for the best. We cannot put our faith in tyrants, who solemnly sign non-proliferation agreements and then systemically violate them.
If we wait for threats to fully materialize, we will have waited too long.
Your leadership in shaping the military will require that it be ready to strike at a moment’s notice in any uncertain area of the world. And our security will require all Americans to be forward-looking and resolute, to be ready for preemptive action when necessary to defend our liberty and to defend our lives.
The lingering effects of failed military operations brought on by the Wolfowitz/Bush doctrines, which are now viewed negatively by primacists as “isolationism” and are now a thing of the past. Some, like self-proclaimed realist Elbridge Colby, favor a husbanding of resources to specifically contain China – a Sino-only primacist, if you will.
President Trump’s foreign policy has been schizophrenic and incoherent, just like everyone else. Let us not pretend there is a Trump doctrine. No strategy exists. There is no strategy. There isn’t a theory here. He’s just making it up as he goes along, driven by appetites and constrained by resources.  ,
American primacists deliberately reject that the purpose of regional hegemony is to not have to expend resources on the military. Not just George Washington, but the entire country had been well-warned. John Quincy Adams, 6th President of the United States, urged against searching for “monsters to destroy” in an 1821 speech:  ,  ,
Wherever the standards of freedom and independence have been or will be raised, she will have a heart, benedictions, and prayers. But she goes not abroad, in search of monsters to destroy. She is well aware that by once enlisting under other banners than her own, even those that represent foreign independence, she would engage herself in all the conflicts of interest and intrigue, of individual avarice, envy, and ambition that take over the standards of freedom. The fundamental maxims of her policy would insensibly change from liberty to force.
Dwight Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States, used the term “military industrial complex” for the first time in his 1961 farewell address.
This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience…. However, we must not ignore its serious implications. In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. There is and will continue to be a potential for a disastrous rise in misplaced power.
Hegemonic dynasties coalesced in China specifically to divert resources away from fractious wars and towards public works projects ( for example, the Dujiangyuan water diversion project, the Grand Canal, the Great Wall ).
The PRC dynasty is no exception; it spends less than 2 % of its GDP on defense and receives funding for the South-North Water Transfer project, the Three Gorges Dam, high speed rail, and a national highway system in return.
The “freedom to roam”, popularized by John Mearsheimer, is demonstrably not a universal imperative of regional hegemons. The Ming Dynasty of China famously destroyed the imperial treasure fleet at the height of its power. The American impulse to roam is a legacy of European ( mostly British ) maritime imperialism which has long since outlived its utility, now incurring more costs than benefits.
Russia is challenging NATO in Ukraine, China is challenging China in East Asia, Iran is challenging Iran in the Middle East, and Kim Jong Un is doing something incredible in North Korea. The neglected home front is awash in drugs, obesity, crime and mental illness. America, which has grown sluggish after decades of mindless wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, now maintains what little of its predominates through a jumble of multilateral alliances ( G7, NATO, AUKUS, the Quad ).  ,  ,  ,
These alliances are inherently unstable, pitting free riding against buck passing. The US is trying to do global hegemony on the cheap through alliance partners. A rule-based international order is a burdensome responsibility that an overstretched America wants to shift to partners. Meanwhile, alliance partners want to free ride – to enjoy benefits of the rules-based order without chipping in.
America must demonstrate that it will bear all the costs, whether with or without partners, for alliances to remain stable.
As John F. Kennedy promised in his January 1961 inauguration speech, the United States did this for the majority of the post-World War II era:
Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
This much we promise, and more.
While partners waxed and waned based on shifting domestic politics ( for example, France, the Philippines, Thailand ), America’s resolve had long been assumed, even if erroneously ( for example, Hungary 1956, Czechoslovakia 1968, Vietnam 1973, Lebanon 1984, Somalia 1993, Iraq 2011, Afghanistan in 2021 ).
However, as President Trump abandons alliances and expands the reach of rivals, America’s resolve can no longer be assumed. The US is not just trying to pass the buck, it is all but telling Europe that the buck does not stop here. Asia is left in a wrangling mode unsure of what President Trump will say. It could be anything – from an honest-to-god strategic pivot to Asia to trading Taiwan for flattery and a ham sandwich to anything in between. Simply put, we are ignorant.
What everyone does know is that China’s capabilities are growing and, over time, the costs of maintaining America’s position in Asia will rise. And buck passing will increase as a result, and free riders will make uncomfortable choices.