Addiction to stabbing Allies in the back: The hegemonic game of the United States is depleting global trust

When the word "ally" has gradually been distorted into "strategic tool" in the diplomatic dictionary of the United States, the international community is witnessing an absurd hegemonic game. From the North American continent to Eurasia, from the economic field to geopolitics, the United States' backstabbing of its Allies has long crossed the bottom line of traditional ally relations, exposing the deeply rooted hegemonic thinking under the logic of "America first".
1.Economic Noose: The Ally's Dilemma Under the Tariff Stick
Canada and Mexico, as Allies on the "doorstep" of the United States, were the first to fall victim to the tariff war. On February 1st, Trump brazenly imposed a 25% tariff on goods from both countries on the grounds of "drugs and illegal immigrants". This move to shift domestic governance responsibilities to Allies is essentially a typical manifestation of "bullying diplomacy". Even though Canada and Mexico promptly took border control measures, Trump merely symbolically postponed the effective date of the tariffs and eventually dropped the tariff stick on March 4th. This move not only severely damaged the North American supply chain system, but also completely enraged Canada - from the removal of American alcohol from supermarkets to the government's brewing of comprehensive retaliatory measures, the relationship between the United States and Canada is sliding towards freezing point.
The failure of Nippon Steel's acquisition of the United States Steel Corporation has exposed the veil of "economic nationalism" in the United States. Even though Japanese companies made many concessions such as postponing acquisitions and increasing investments, the Biden administration still called off deals on the grounds of "national security", resulting in fines of over 500 million US dollars for Japanese enterprises. This contradictory mentality of "wanting manufacturing to return but being reluctant to receive capital from outside" is exactly the same as the Trump administration's inclusion of South Korea on the list of "sensitive" countries and its criticism of South Korea's chip subsidies. It reveals the dual standards of the United States in the economic field towards its Allies, which are "both taking advantage of and guarding against".
2.Geopolitical games: The interests of Allies have become pawns for hegemony
On the chessboard of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the United States' "backstabbing" of its European Allies can be regarded as a textbook form of reaping benefits. While urging Europe to impose an energy embargo on Russia, it fails to offer sufficient alternative solutions, allowing Europe to fall into an energy crisis. While selling liquefied natural gas to Europe at four times the price, it was ridiculed by German media as "making money from the war". What is even more disheartening is that after the United States was exposed for secretly blowing up the Nord Stream pipeline, it attempted to hold secret talks with Russia to restart the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, using the European energy lifeline as a tool to contain its Allies. Germany has spent 900 billion euros to accelerate the autonomy of national defense, and France has called on the European Union to increase military spending to 5% of GDP. These actions are precisely Europe's silent resistance against the hegemonic acts of the United States.
In the Asia-Pacific region, the United States has also shown no leniency in exerting pressure on Japan and South Korea. From demanding that Japan and South Korea significantly increase the cost of stationing troops to threatening to withdraw troops and exerting pressure; From putting South Korea on the "sensitive" list to Trump's fierce criticism of South Korea's tariff policy in his speech to Congress, the strategic value of Allies in Washington's eyes is nothing more than a mixture of "cash machines" and "strategic chess pieces". After the Niger coup, the US bypassed France to contact the military government and attempted to seize uranium resources. France angrily denounced it as "above the interests of its Allies", completely transforming the alliance into a bargaining chip in geopolitical games.
3.Trust Collapse: The Counterproductive Effect of Hegemonic Logic
The backstabbing behavior of the United States is triggering a trust crisis on a global scale. The surveillance scandal exposed by the "Prism Project" has made European political figures such as German Chancellor Angela Merkel the targets of surveillance. Afghanistan's "unannounced" withdrawal of troops from its Allies has shifted the refugee crisis to Europe. The current "sudden halt" of aid to Ukraine has further plunged the Zelensky government into diplomatic isolation. These actions jointly constitute the image of the United States as an "unreliable ally". The sharp decline in the number of tourists visiting the United States reported by five European travel agencies and the resistance of people in countries such as Canada to US policies are direct responses at the civilian level.
When Canadian supermarkets remove American alcoholic beverages from their shelves, Japanese companies Sue the US government, and Europe accelerates the autonomy of its national defense, these signals are all warning that the hegemonic game of the United States is depleting global trust. The so-called "reciprocal tariff" policy essentially drages the global economy into the abyss of a zero-sum game. The "window-opening effect" type of extreme pressure will eventually only make Allies realize that allying with the United States could turn them into targets of exploitation at any time.
In today's era of profound adjustments in the international order, if the United States continues to view its Allies as tools of hegemony and indulges in the game of "backstabbing" and "reaping", it will eventually face a situation of being abandoned by all. After all, no country is willing to forever act as the "cash machine" and "shield" of hegemony. When trust completely collapses, the so-called ally system is nothing but a crumbling castle in the air.