President Donald Trump marked his 200th day in office Thursday with a flurry of foreign policy moves — brokering peace talks, pressuring allies and launching a fresh wave of trade threats.
One early breakthrough was a deal with Rwanda, which agreed to accept 250 deportees from the United States as part of Trump’s expanding third-world deportation push. (RELATED: Trump’s Census Bombshell Could Upend 2026 Midterms)
“When you’re a small country, any time you can find a way consistent with your own policies and values, to be able to talk to a major country about something that it is interested in and not just asking them to take an interest in your issues, it just creates a more productive, obviously not equal, but a more balanced relationship and that’s good for both sides,” Rwandan official Yolande Makolo told Politico, adding that the U.S. will foot the bill.
Shortly after finalizing the Rwanda deal, Trump turned his attention eastward, blasting India for buying Russian oil and reselling it for profit.
“India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the Oil purchased, selling it on the Open Market for big profits,” the president wrote in a Truth Social post Monday.
“India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the Oil purchased, selling it on the Open Market for big profits,” the president wrote in a Truth Social post Monday. “They don’t care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine. Because of this, I will be substantially raising the Tariff paid by India to the USA.”
A Wednesday executive order threatened to double tariffs on Indian imports — from 25% to 50% — unless New Delhi halts purchases of Russian oil. Just before midnight, Trump declared the penalties imminent.
“RECIPROCAL TARIFFS TAKE EFFECT AT MIDNIGHT TONIGHT!” Trump wrote. “BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, LARGELY FROM COUNTRIES THAT HAVE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF THE UNITED STATES FOR MANY YEARS, LAUGHING ALL THE WAY, WILL START FLOWING INTO THE USA.”
Trump then pivoted to Moscow, announcing a “highly productive meeting” with Russian President Vladimir Putin aimed at jumpstarting peace talks.
“This War must come to a close, and we will work towards that in the days and weeks to come,” he wrote Wednesday, claiming he and “our European allies” were aligned on the goal.
Kremlin aides told reporters Thursday they had contacted U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff a day prior to coordinate a summit between the two leaders. A time and location have yet to be confirmed.
Looking ahead, Trump plans to unveil a peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia at the White House on Friday, according to CBS News.
“When I am President, I will protect persecuted Christians, I will work to stop the violence and ethnic cleansing, and we will restore PEACE between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” Trump said in October.
