موقع وجه أفريقيا موقع وجه أفريقيا هو موقع مهتم بمتابعة التطورات في القارة الأفريقية
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Muhamad Yehia
In Washington at noon local time (6 pm CET), Donald Trump took the oath of office for a second go at the presidency of the United States in what is a remarkable political comeback.
Donald Trump, the famously unpredictable former property developer and reality television personality, has returned to the Presidency vowing to restore US’s global standing, and promising a new “golden age” for America.
“From this moment on, America’s decline is over,” he said after taking the oath of office.
He will step back into the White House as the survivor by an inch of an assassination attempt, the alleged instigator of a failed coup d’etat – and as a convicted felon, a first for a US president.
The weeks between his resounding election win over the Democratic Party’s last-minute substitute Kamala Harris have been abuzz with feverish speculation over what the newly emboldened Trump will do next.
We have seen threats of trade tariffs against all and sundry – not least the EU. There has been wild talk of annexing Greenland, Canada and Panama, or at least its canal. And a repudiation of global efforts to arrest climate change.
Trump has promised to sign a flurry of executive orders as soon as he takes office. Nothing unusual in that – but it’s the content that will count. Stay with us for ongoing updates as the day unfolds.
The three richest men in the world were all in the Rotunda hall of the United States Capitol building to hear their new president promise to “stop all government censorship and bring back free speech to America”.
“Never again will the immense power of the state be weaponised to persecute political opponents – something I know something about,” Trump said.
Mark Zuckerberg (left) famously banned Trump from Facebook in 2021, but unfroze his account last year in the run-up to the presidential election. He has since announced an end to in-house fact checking, as well as chipping in $1m for Trump’s inauguration fund, as did Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (centre). Elon Musk (far right) has become part of Trump’s inner circle after using his immense wealth on the campaign trail. The electric car, commercial spaceflight and social media magnate gave the thumbs up as Trump announced his intention to see a US astronaut plant the flag on Mars.
Trump vows to restore US’s global standing as speech wraps
In his inaugural speech as president, Trump promised to tighten the US’s southern border and reshape the asylum system, colonise Mars, bring down prices, allow more energy production, and restore the US’s standing on the global stage.
“America will be respected again and admired again,” Trump said in his closing remarks, promising that “we will be strong and we will win like never before”.
“We are Americans, the future is ours, and our golden age has just begun,” Trump said.
US will ‘take back’ the Panama Canal
The US lost 38,000 lives in building the Panama Canal and has been treated unfairly since handing it to Panama, with US vessels being overcharged to use it, Trump said.
It was a ”foolish gift that should have never been made”, he said as he continued his inaugural address, asserting that China is now operating the vital link between the Atlantic and Pacific.
“We didn’t give it to China, we gave it to Panama – and we’re taking it back,” he said.
NATO chief says it’s time to ‘turbo-charge’ defence spending
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte welcomed Trump’s return to office on the platform X.
“With President Trump back in office we will turbo-charge defence spending & production,” Rutte said, adding that “peace and strength” can be achieved “through NATO”.
European leaders have been concerned about a possible American retreat from the security alliance, given Trump has said he would not defend “delinquent” allies against aggression and has pushed for NATO members to spend 5% of GDP on defence.
During his speech, Trump said the US will build the “strongest military the world has ever seen”.
“We will measure our success not only by the battles we win, but also by the wars that we end, and perhaps most importantly by the wars we never get into,” Trump said.
Trump vows tariffs on foreign countries
Donald Trump is announcing what he has been planning for a long time: tariffs on imports arriving into the US. It will “protect American workers,” Trump said. “We will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens” he added, announcing an external revenue service.
Trump: America’s fossil fuels reserves will make country rich again
He also plans to declare a “national energy emergency”, Trump says. “We will drill, baby, drill,” he said, repeating an election pledge to exploit fossil fuel reserves.
America has “the largest amount of oil and gas of any nation on earth, and we are going to use it…and export American energy all over the world”, Trump said.
America’s fossil fuel reserves are “liquid gold” that will make the US rich again, he said.
The incoming president also pledged to end the Green New Deal and revoke an electric vehicle mandate, allowing citizens to buy whatever vehicle they choose
Trump to declare ‘state of emergency’ on southern US border
“Today I will sign a series of executive orders for the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense – it’s all about common sense,” Trump says during his inaugural speech.
“First I will declare a national emergency at our southern border,” he said to vigorous applause.
“All illegal entry will immediately be halted and we will begin the process of returning millions of “criminal aliens” back where they came from, he said.
Trump was quick to torch Biden’s record overseas, pointing to government failures to address “a continuing catalogue of catastrophic events abroad” in his inaugural speech.
Trump has said he wants to quickly end the war in Ukraine, and was influential in negotiating the temporary ceasefire deal in the devastating conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
“From this day forward, our country will flourish and be respected again all over the world,” Trump said.
Congratulations roll in from EU leaders
European leaders congratulated Trump on social media platform X minutes after the new American president’s swearing in.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the “EU looks forward to working closely with [Trump] to tackle global challenges”.
António Costa, president of the European Council and former prime minister of Portugal, posted that “together, our societies can achieve greater prosperity and strengthen their common security”.
Roberta Metsola, president of the European Parliament, wished the American people well.
