Prudence more crucial than power in new global wars

You can remember the "mother of all the bombs" that was dropped against the Taliban in Afghanistan upon U.S. President Donald Trump's instructions. It is not known how many Taliban militants were killed by this bomb, which is the largest non-atomic bomb in history.

The German embassy building was also ravaged when a bomb exploded in Afghanistan's capital Kabul on Wednesday and some 80 people were killed and hundreds were injured. Again on Trump's order, a Syrian regime air base was hit with tomahawk missiles launched from U.S. battleships. However, regime war jets are still using the base as if nothing ever happened.

My point is that although there is not a world war going on in a conventional sense, a serious global war in various regions is in question. The inclusion of a superpower does not change much in this global war. In this sense, the U.S., as a superpower, is not enough to win these wars. Prudence is now as significant as power in this new global war. The current situations in Iraq and Afghanistan are the tangible consequences of imprudent actions.

If one attempts to evaluate the balances of today's world order based on people, one would inevitably ask whether Trump or Russian President Vladimir Putin is more prudent. We have been familiar with Putin's style for years. Some of the important steps Putin has taken so far include making Russia a superpower again, annexing Crimea and filling the authority gap in Syria with a Russian military presence.

Trump, however, is still in his fifth month in office and has not yet displayed a great mind for foreign politics. The new U.S. president has kept going with the mistakes remaining from President Barack Obama's time in office. The arming of the Democratic Union Party's (PYD) armed wing, the People's Protection Units (YPG), which is the Syrian affiliate of the PKK terrorist group, and the support given to President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi of Egypt, are two striking examples of such mistakes.

Also, Trump's strife with North Korea has shaped an absurd picture. Even German Chancellor Angela Merkel is at odds with Trump. While observing all these developments, our primary focus must be the position of Turkey in this picture. It is still uncertain how the U.S. will behave in different regions as the leader of the alliance we are in. In a nutshell, we are in a position that only requires self-confidence. And we are on the right track in this respect.