Some silences speak more than words. That of Justin Trudeau, Tuesday, lasted forever, after a journalist asked him about the martial and un empathetic attitude of Donald Trump. Twenty long seconds, facing the camera, enough time to let a few angels pass before the Canadian Prime Minister says that he has been following with "horror" the storm that has shaken the United States since the death of George Floyd, this black man killed May 25 by a white police officer in Minneapolis. "It's time to bring people together," he commented, without mentioning the name of the American president, but was it still worth it?
Like Trudeau, who has never been able to hide the aversion that his American neighbor inspired in him, the world shoots its arrows against the troublemaker of the White House. "Scandalous", "inexcusable", pinged this Wednesday the English "friend" Boris Johnson to qualify the death of Floyd, while passing the lesson to the billionaire: "My message to President Trump, to anyone in the United States , since the United Kingdom is that racism, racist violence, have no place in our societies and I am sure it is a widely shared opinion in the world. "
In the Vatican, the American president has never smelled of holiness. Demonstration urbi et orbi Wednesday by the voice of Pope Francis, during his audience: "We can neither tolerate nor close our eyes to any form of racism or exclusion, and pretend to defend the sanctity of all human life, thundered the sovereign pontiff, describing racism as "sin".
Merkel's "nein"
We could thus decline the list of world leaders who openly or more allusively criticize the boss of the United States. Angela Merkel said "nein" this weekend at the G7 that he hoped to organize "in June" in Washington. The Chancellor put forward a completely acceptable word of apology (the Covid-19 pandemic) but we can especially see in it a blow addressed to this president with whom relations have been icy since taking office in early 2017. But what she had sometimes managed, at the cost of contortions, when it was a question of avoiding American sanctions against German cars.
The European Union, which Trump is hushing up as soon as he can, returned the coin to him through the voice of Josep Borrell, the head of his diplomacy: "Here in Europe, we are shocked and dismayed by the death of George Floyd, like the people of the United States. " The head of the UN, the prudent Antonio Guterres, was there with his couplet, as were the usual enemies of Uncle Sam: Putin's Russia ("scandalized"), the Iran of the mullahs ("It is the nature of America! ”) and of course, Communist China, which had a good game of denouncing the“ chronic disease ”of racism in the United States.
World leaders are not discovering the White House master's cookie-cutter statements today. They have all had many opportunities to react, sometimes have done so firmly, but so far, no fire has been so strong. Obviously something has changed, but why?
"The leaders may be betting on a possible defeat for Trump," says historian Thomas Snégaroff. And it's true that his rival Democrat Joe Biden is currently the favorite of the November election, with five to seven points ahead in the polls, an advantage he has maintained for months. This specialist from the United States also detects a kind of liberation ”. “Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel realized, like others, that their words had no influence on Trump's decisions. So what's the point of trying to round off the corners or hunching your back if it has no effect, if not to be humiliated in return. What happened to every leader who dealt with him! "
"It doesn't care to please or displease the world"
Analysis shared by Mathieu Gallard, director of research at Ipsos, where he scrutinizes America: “vis-à-vis their own opinion, being rebuffed by Trump is very counterproductive. They understood that it was rather in their interest to express their opposition. This is often often of little consequence: the American president talks a lot, even threatens, but he does little. His only compass is his electorate, and the speech he makes against the elites, whether in Washington or elsewhere in the world. "
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VIDEO. Death of George Floyd: "I didn't like what I saw at all," says Trump
In the eyes of the Republican, foreign policy is first of all an instrument at the service of internal political issues, all the more so when the elections are approaching. Whatever his image, only his constituents, acquired or coveted, count. "Trump does not care to please or displease the world, decrypts Thomas Snégaroff. On the contrary, even: to be kind is an act of weakness. "
Why France seems so careful with him
With France, he blew hot and, above all, cold. Emmanuel Macron has long believed that he could establish a special relationship with his atypical counterpart. He “treated” it a lot, without reaping the benefits. The tone has now changed. But since the protests in recent days and the reaction to Trump's cannon, Paris has remained silent and cautious (a shy statement from the Quai d'Orsay), compared to other capitals. “We are following what is happening with attention. We want American democracy, and its institutions, to be able to deal with these questions, ”it is said, at a brisk pace, at the Elysée Palace.
At the top of power, the embarrassment is palpable, as if the relationship "I love you me either" with Trump still weighed. Add to this that the Parisian demonstration against police violence, Tuesday evening, at the call of the family of Adama Traore, probably does not encourage France to give lessons publicly.