Ex-foreign secretary William Hague warns Britain must prepare for the ‘trauma and chaos’ of Donald Trump becoming US president again

Britain must prepare for the “trauma and chaos” if Donald Trump becomes US president for a second time, Lord William Haag has warned.

The ex-Foreign Secretary, also former Tory leader, estimated the chances of Trump returning to the White House at ’50/50′.

The 77-year-old – who served in the Oval Office between 2017 and 2021 – is widely expected to be the Republican nominee for next year’s election and challenge Joe Biden for the presidency again.

Lord Haag warned companies and other Western countries that they cannot “simply wait” and see whether Trump will be successful with a third election campaign.

He warned that Trump, in a second term as president, would appoint “spineless placemen” to the FBI or other top positions and endanger the “fragile china” of America’s institutions.

Trump could also withdraw US support for Ukraine, “withdraw from NATO”, resume a “naive predilection” for global dictators, or scrap US climate policy, Lord Haag added.

The ex-Foreign Secretary, also a former Tory leader, put the chances of Trump returning to the White House at ’50/50′.

Lord Haag said Joe Biden, at 80, would probably ‘best help’ efforts to prevent Trump from returning as US president by ‘stepping aside’ in 2024

“A selection of these items alone would trigger the greatest geopolitical upheaval since the end of the Cold War,” he wrote in a column for The times.

Lord Haag added that a “radical isolationism” in parts of US politics was encouraged by Trump and would “outlive him and eventually come to power”.

He also warned that countries such as Russia and China are “preparing now” for Trump’s return to power.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will “play for time” and hope that Trump’s return as US president will shatter Western unity over Ukraine, while China will see “uncertainty and erratic signals” from the White House as an opportunity to seize control of Taiwan. suggested Lord Haag.

“Autocrats around the world will now prepare their strategies with Trump in mind, and in some cases help bring him to power,” he added.

“As dictators prepare for Trump by playing the long game and sowing discord, free nations must accelerate and strengthen their unity and increase their resilience in the face of shocks.

“While we must convince Americans that they need us, we must also show them that we can do more for ourselves.

“The rest is up to them, and especially up to them to spare the world the trauma and chaos of a second Trump term.”

Lord Haag called on Western countries to prepare for a possible return of Mr Trump as US president by stepping up efforts to block ‘divisive material on social media designed to weaken democracy’, to further increase military aid to Ukraine and increase defense spending to 2 per month. cent of GDP for all NATO members.

He also outlined how a “coherent Western strategy for stability across North Africa” should be crafted – with or without US involvement – ​​and demanded stronger defense ties with South Korea and Japan, and deeper foreign cooperation policy between Britain and the EU.

Carbon border taxes ‘ready for launch if the US gives up its net zero commitments’, World Bank reforms to help poorer countries, and international controls on the use of artificial intelligence must be developed, Lord Haag added.

He said Biden, at 80, would likely “best help” efforts to prevent Trump from returning as US president by “standing aside” as the Democratic candidate in 2024.