By LYNN BERRY, DIDI TANG, JILL COLVIN and ELLEN KNICKMEYER (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The group suggests that future military aid to Ukraine could be dependent on the country joining peace talks with Russia. They also propose banning Chinese citizens from buying property within 50 miles of U.S. government buildings and filling the national security sector with Trump supporters.
A group supporting a potential second term for former President Donald Trump has released a new policy book outlining an “America First” national security agenda.
The book, which was shared with The Associated Press before its release on Thursday, is the latest effort from the America First Policy Institute. Similar to the Heritage Foundation’s “Project 2025,” the group aims to help Trump avoid the mistakes of 2016 when he entered the White House unprepared.
In addition to their policy work, the institute’s transition project has been creating numerous executive orders and developing a training program for future political appointees. Heritage has been building a comprehensive personnel database and providing its own policy manuals.
Both groups emphasize that they are separate from Trump’s campaign, which has attempted to distance itself from such actions, stating that the only Trump-endorsed policies are those articulated by the candidate himself.
Despite this, Fred Fleitz, the editor of the book, mentioned that he and retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, who served as Trump’s acting national security adviser and wrote several chapters, have been in regular contact with the former president, seeking input and discussing topics like Ukraine at length.
“We hope this is where he is. We’re not speaking for him, but I think he will approve,” said Fleitz, who previously worked as the National Security Council’s chief of staff.
He expressed hope that the book will serve as “a guidebook that will be an intellectual foundation for the America First approach” to national security “that’s easy to use.”
“It’s a grand strategy,” added Kellogg. “You don’t start with the policies first. You start with the strategies first. And that’s what we’ve done.”
The group considers the current U.S. national security direction a failure, blaming a foreign policy establishment for embracing an interventionist and “globalist” approach to the detriment of America’s national interests.
Although lacking in specifics, the book offers some indicators of how a future Trump administration might handle foreign policy matters such as Russia’s war against Ukraine. Trump has stated that, if elected, he would resolve the conflict before Inauguration Day in January, but has chosen not to disclose how.
The section on the war in the book focuses more on how the conflict began rather than how to end it. However, it suggests that the U.S. should make future military aid conditional on Ukraine participating in peace talks with Russia.
The book predicts that the Ukrainian army will likely lose ground over time and advises against the U.S. continuing to “send arms to a stalemate that Ukraine will eventually find difficult to win.” However, once a peace agreement is reached, it states that the U.S. should continue to arm Ukraine as a deterrent to Russia.
The writers support a plan for Ukraine that allows them to keep their goal of regaining all their territory, while also agreeing to diplomacy with the understanding that this may not happen until Putin leaves office.
It recognizes that Ukrainians and their supporters will struggle to accept a peace deal that doesn't return all their territory or hold Russia accountable for the harm caused. It's similar to what Donald Trump said in 2023: 'I want everyone to stop dying.' We think it's a positive first step.
The book faults Democratic President Joe Biden for the war and echoes Trump's belief that Putin wouldn't have invaded if Trump was in charge. if Trump had been in office. Its main argument to support this claim is that Putin saw Trump as strong and decisive. In reality, Trump was friendly with the Russian leader and was hesitant to challenge him. got close to the Russian leader and was unwilling to confront him.
Most of the chapter discusses a sometimes incorrect timeline of Biden's handling of the war.
Looking ahead, it suggests that Putin might be convinced to participate in peace talks if Biden and other NATO leaders agree to delay Ukraine's NATO membership for an extended period. It also proposes that the U.S. create a long-term security plan for Ukraine's defense that focuses on bilateral security. It doesn't explain what this would involve. It also calls for imposing taxes on Russian energy sales to finance reconstruction in Ukraine.
The book criticizes Trump's transition efforts in 2016, expressing concern about the lack of preparation before Trump took office.
The chaotic transition of 2016/2017 didn't help President Trump and the country, and slowed the progress of his agenda, according to the authors. They point out that before the election, Democrat Hillary Clinton's transition team had submitted over 1,000 names for future security clearance, whereas Trump's team submitted only 25.
The group claims to have identified around 1,200 national security-related positions that the next administration will need to fill, and urges them to be prepared on Day 1 with Trump loyalists who support the 'America First' approach.
“It's not about punishing people or trying to bring politics into government positions. It's about ensuring that government employees do their job and keep politics out of their work,” Fleitz said.
The book describes China as the nation's most urgent national security threat, seeking to replace the U.S. as the leading global power. It suggests a tough policy building on approaches from both the Trump years and the Biden administration, with the aim of making Beijing's policies 'mostly irrelevant to American life.'
It prioritizes economic worries about China as national security concerns and proposes a reciprocal approach that would block Beijing's access to U.S. markets in the same way that American companies have been barred from China.
The book also proposes more thorough evaluation of cyber and tech companies owned by U.S. rivals, especially China, to ensure they're not collecting sensitive information. It also suggests banning Chinese nationals from purchasing property within a 50-mile radius of any U.S. government property.
It proposes restrictions on visas for Chinese students who want to study in the United States and for the prohibition of TikTok and other Chinese apps due to concerns about data privacy. However, Trump has expressed opposition to a law that would require TikTok to be sold or block access for the U.S.
The perspectives of analysts on what an “America First” policy looks like often mirror the writers’ personal focuses.
According to Ellie Cohanim, a former Trump deputy State Department envoy responsible for monitoring and combating antisemitism, an “America First” policy heavily prioritizes the Israeli military.
Cohanim suggested that the U.S. quickly deliver a squadron of “25 Lockheed Martin F-35s, one squadron of Boeing’s F-15 EX, and a squadron of Apache E attack helicopters” to Israel.
Cohanim proposed that the U.S. should provide some of its military funding to Israel in Israeli currency so Israel can use it domestically. Additionally, Washington should urge Arab states to cover the costs of rebuilding Gaza and agree to Israel postponing any political negotiations with the Palestinians until there is an unspecified period for the Palestinians to undergo mandatory deradicalization, according to her.
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