While the world will be closely watching the U.S. election, some countries will be watching more closely than others. A number of world leaders have a personal stake in the outcome, with their fortunes depending heavily on the success – or failure – of President Donald Trump. Perhaps none has so much riding on a Trump victory as Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. The Israeli leader, who had a rocky relationship with President Barack Obama, has praised Trump as “the greatest friend” Israel ever had in the White House. Trump has delivered a series of diplomatic gifts to Netanyahu, recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, withdrawing from Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran and offering a Mideast plan that heavily favors Israel over the Palestinians. The White House brokered the establishment of diplomatic ties between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. But Netanyahu’s close relationship with Trump — and more broadly the Republican party and its evangelical Christian base — has come with a price. It has undercut Israel’s traditional bipartisan support in Washington and alienated many Democrats, especially the rising progressive wing, and the largely liberal Jewish American community. “For Netanyahu, a Biden victory would be a disaster,” said Eytan Gilboa, an expert on U.S.-Israel relations at Israel’s Bar Ilan University. He noted that Biden has already promised a different approach to Iran and the Palestinians. Sidelined and humiliated by Trump, the Palestinians have made no secret about their hopes for a Biden victory. “If we are going to live another four years with President Trump, God help us,” the Palestinian prime minister, Mohammad Shtayyeh, said last week. Here is a look at some of the other world leaders who have a big stake in the U.S. election: BRITAIN’S BORIS JOHNSON The Conservative prime minister’s bombastic style and populist instincts have often been compared to Trump’s and the two have struck a friendly relationship. Trump has called the British leader a “great guy.” Trump’s enthusiasm for Brexit helped Johnson talk up the prospect of securing a quick U.S. trade deal now that Britain has left the European Union. Kim Darroch, who was the British ambassador to Washington until 2019, said recently that Johnson would likely be Trump’s “best friend in Europe” if the president is reelected. Still, London and Washington differ on many international issues, and a Biden victory could restore relative normality in trans-Atlantic relations. CHINA’S XI JINPING For the Chinese leader, a second Trump term would bring a continuation of the bruising trade disputes, diplomatic jousting, and near-daily accusations against China on issues from human rights to the environment and the South China Sea. Trump’s onslaught has offered Xi an opportunity to portray the U.S. as a declining democracy coping with racial unrest and a bungled response to the coronavirus. Under Biden, the U.S. may move closer to its allies and reengage with international organizations that might make demands of China. But Biden would bring a level of predictability and normalcy that Chinese leaders prefer and lessen the chances of outright confrontation. INDIA’S NARENDRA MODI The right-wing populist prime minister and Trump are known for a similar style of leadership deeply rooted in using nationalist sentiments. Critics say Trump has looked the other way while Modi carries out a Hindu nationalist agenda at the expense of Indian […]
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