Trump blows hot and cold – whether it’s about a stupid war, or North Korea

US President Donald Trump flashes a thumbs up while stepping off Air Force One upon arrival at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, New Jersey, on 31 July 2026. Picture: AFP / Aaron Swartz I have been writing this column for a long time, so I have a finely developed sense for when the audience is sick of a subject. We have definitely crossed that boundary with regard to the wars currently being fought up and down the strip of land between Eastern Ukraine/Persian Gulf/ Israel, Gaza and Lebanon.

It’s not just that they are stupid wars, launched by men who were too ignorant or arrogant to realise that they could not win them (Russia’s Vladimir Putin, US president Donald Trump and Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu), and it’s not because they are harmless wars. Not only are they killing thousands every week, but in every case, the country that started the war also has nuclear weapons. In each case there is a real possibility that the leader in question might resort to using at least one “tactical” weapon as a final warning, rather than accept the blame for a humiliating failure.

So I thought: maybe I could do a piece about Kim Jong-un’s teenage daughter’s chance of being North Korea’s next dictator. Just fluff, really, but it’s better than producing nothing to fill this space. So, I go online to update my limited knowledge of North Korean politics.

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Surprise… the last time most of them paid much attention to North Korea was in 2017-18, when Donald Trump decided that he would save the world from the threat of North Korean nuclear weapons. As they used to say about the Roman empire: All Roads Lead to Donald Trump.

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