CHALLENGE FOR PRESIDENT TRUMP: DEFENDING CHRISTIANITY IN A TURBULENT CENTURY

Rather than appeasing autocrats and adversaries, US policy should prioritize the protection of Christian communities and other religious minorities.

- SAVIO RODRIGUES

The 21st century has been a challenging era for Christianity. While Europe has voluntarily turned away from its Christian roots, other communities across the globe face existential threats. From ethnic cleansing to systemic persecution, Christian populations are under siege in many regions. Despite the symbolic nods to faith by USPresidents, few have sincerely upheld the defence of Christian communities abroad. President-elect Donald Trump has the opportunity to change this trajectory by making the protection of persecuted Christians a cornerstone of his second-term foreign policy.

One of the most glaring examples of the failure to defend Christianity occurred in Nagorno-Karabakh. The region’s Christian Armenian population, with a heritage spanning 1,700 years, faced ethnic cleansing at the hands of Azerbaijan. Under the weak leadership of Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Agency for International Development Administrator Samantha Power, the US failed to act decisively.

Rather than condemning Azerbaijan for its actions, the Biden administration resorted to euphemisms like “depopulation” to describe the forced expulsion of the Christian community. Blinken vetoed stronger language that might have held Azerbaijan accountable, allowing dictator IlhamAliyev to pursue his campaign of ethnic cleansing unchecked. The lack of accountability emboldens aggressors and undermines US credibility on human rights.

For Trump, this is an opportunity to reverse course. He should direct his Secretary of State nominee, Marco Rubio, to explicitly recognize the expulsion of Christians from Nagorno-Karabakh as ethnic cleansing. This acknowledgment is not just symbolic; it sends a message that the US will not tolerate such atrocities and will hold perpetrators accountable.