How the world is reacting to Donald Trump’s inauguration

No US inauguration has ever “sparked so much expectation, concern and uncertainty,” journalist Salvador Garcia Soto wrote in El Universal. “The political and diplomatic signals so far have not been encouraging for Mexico.” Beyond Trump’s threats of tariffs, Mexico’s foreign secretary has not been able to make contact with incoming Trump administration officials. And the presence of Argentina’s Javier Milei and El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele at the inauguration “is a clear message that confirms who the United States sees as its ‘strategic allies’ in Latin America.”

Chinese state media voiced optimism for a “new starting point” in US-China ties under Trump. Beijing is facing domestic economic struggles that could be exacerbated by a trade war under Trump, perhaps contributing to the more conciliatory tone in a Global Times editorial: “History has repeatedly shown that China and the US both stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation.” The editorial criticized the Biden administration’s recent chip export restrictions aimed at denting China’s tech ambitions, saying they were “marked by partisan tensions and irrational emotions, leaving numerous thorny issues for the new government to address.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Trump just before his inauguration Monday and signaled an openness to direct communication with the US. Putin’s statements, The Moscow Times noted, marked a shift from November, when the Kremlin declined to congratulate Trump on his victory and described the US as “unfriendly” toward Russia. “We hear [Trump’s] statements on the need to prevent World War III. We undoubtedly welcome such a disposition,” Putin said.

Saudi Arabia is hoping to boost its diplomatic standing under a second Trump administration, Arabian Gulf Business Insight wrote. Riyadh wants to “affirm this is no longer a ‘little brother’ relationship,” president of the Saudi-US Trade Group said. “Saudi Arabia sees itself as an up and coming Middle Power and envisions a relationship with the US along the lines of South Korea or Brazil.” An expansion of the Abraham Accords and bringing Saudi Arabia into the fold is “the obvious next step,” especially following the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement, AGBI wrote. More US investment in Saudi Arabia, and vice versa, presents another opportunity to bolster ties.

Many Europeans associate Trump’s return with fear, but for millions in the US and around the world, “it is associated with hope. With the hope that something will change — for the better,” Die Zeit wrote. The dissonance shows that “that Europe is isolated in its view of Trump - and all hopes for a global anti-Trump alliance are misguided. And it means that Trump is entering his second term with enormous trust capital, both at home and abroad.”