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President Donald Trump’s second term has taken the world by storm in his first 100 days, leaving allies and adversaries scrambling to respond to new U.S. tariffs, stalled peace negotiations and hardball diplomacy from the White House.
On the campaign trail, he pledged to hit allies and foes alike with massive tariffs, end Russia’s war in Ukraine within 24-hours and threatened that “all hell” would break out if all hostages were not freed from the clutches of Hamas in Gaza by the time he entered the Oval Office.
While Trump has been able to make good on some of his promises, other ambitions remain unmet. Here’s what Trump has accomplished and what challenges remain:

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, right, steps out from his plane as he arrives at Muscat, Oman, Friday, April 25, 2025, a day prior to negotiations with U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff. (AP)
Relations with China deteriorate
Relations between the U.S. and China have hit a level of animosity not seen between the two superpowers since Washington normalized ties with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the 1970s.
The initial U.S.-China trade war started during Trump’s first term, in which he hit China with 25% tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese goods in April 2018.
Beijing responded by slapping reciprocal tariffs on $50 billion worth of U.S. goods, mostly targeting U.S. agricultural products worth some $16.5 billion — a trade war that saw the loss of a quarter of a million U.S. jobs by January 2021, according to the U.S.-China Business Council (USCBC).
From the campaign trail, Trump threatened to hit China with 60% tariffs — which he nearly did in early April when he announced an additional 34% tariff on top of the existing taxes already in place.
But what had already sent geopolitical shockwaves and sparked near-immediate market concerns was further escalated just over a week later when Trump ratcheted up tariffs on Beijing to 145%.
China has responded by hitting Washington with its own 125% reciprocal tariffs on U.S. imports and, according to a Bloomberg report on Monday, cargo supply shipments have already dropped by 60%.
Americans are expected to begin feeling the pains of the trade war come mid-May.

Photos of President Donald Trump signing an executive order at the Oval Office of the White House, next to photos of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) as investors and markets reacted earlier this month to the news of Trump’s reciprocal tariffs. Photos via Getty Images (Getty Images)
Trump said last week he had reached some 200 trade deals with countries affected by his sweeping tariffs — measures that hit nearly every U.S. trading partner, including longtime allies. He paused the tariffs for 90 days earlier this month following intense backlash.
The status of trading relations with U.S. partners remains unclear, along with whether the administration will implement the blanket tariffs on those nations come July.
The 25% tariffs on steel, aluminum and imported vehicles remain in effect.
The White House did not directly respond to Fox News Digital’s questions regarding next steps Trump will takes when it comes to handling thus far unresolved conflict in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip.
A White House spokesman instead said, “President Trump inherited widespread foreign conflicts and a weak standing on the world stage from Joe Biden. Now, America is strong again, hostages are free from Gaza, Marc Fogel and Ksenia Karelina are home, hundreds of Houthi and other terrorists have been eliminated, and we are closer to peace than ever before.
“This President will never get the credit he deserves for his vast foreign policy accomplishments, but Americans know they are freer and safer under his leadership,” the spokesman added.












