Global leaders congratulate Trump but his victory looks set to roil the world -- again

LONDON (AP) — The verdict of U.S. voters was more decisive than most pollsters and pundits had predicted. Now the world waits to see whether the election of Donald Trump as president for a second time will prove as destabilizing as many American allies fear.

Trump secured victory Wednesday when he surpassed the 270 electoral college votes needed to win. In a victory speech before the official declaration, he vowed to “put our country first” and bring about a “golden age” for America.

Trump’s first term saw him insult and alienate many of the United States’ longstanding allies. His return to the White House, four years after losing office to President Joe Biden, has huge consequences for everything from global trade to climate change to multiple crises and conflicts around the world.

Trump has pledged to ramp up a tariff feud with China, the United States’ growing economic and strategic rival. In the Middle East, Trump has pledged, without saying how, to end the conflicts between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah. He has also vowed to end the Russia-Ukraine war within 24 hours of taking office – something Ukraine and its supporters fear would be on terms favorable to Moscow.

Here’s how leaders and others around the world are reacting:

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte congratulated Trump, saying, “I look forward to working with him again to advance peace through strength through NATO” in the face of “a growing number of challenges globally,” including “the increasing alignment of China, Russia, North Korea and Iran.”

Trump was a strong critic of the North Atlantic military alliance during his first term, accusing its other members of failing to pull their weight. Earlier this year he said the United States would not defend NATO members that don’t meet defense spending targets. Trump wants European allies to boost their own military spending to rely less on U.S. deterrence, but some European leaders and diplomats have expressed fears that he fundamentally lacks commitment to NATO.

Rutte emphasized the positive, praising Trump for his work persuading member states to ramp up defense spending and saying NATO was now “stronger, larger, and more united.”

America’s allies are — belatedly, some say — grappling with what to do if they cannot depend on the U.S. for their defense.

“The existential concern for Europeans has been what happens to Ukraine, what happens to Europe’s security, what happens to America’s commitment to NATO?” said Leslie Vinjamuri, director of the U.S. and Americas program at the think tank Chatham House. “Will America be there for Europe?”

The U.S. is by far Kyiv’s biggest military backer as it battles Russian invasion, though the Biden administration resisted pressure from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to do even more. Zelenskyy, like Rutte, said he welcomed Trump’s “peace through strength” approach.

“This is exactly the principle that can practically bring just peace in Ukraine closer,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media. “I am hopeful that we will put it into action together. We look forward to an era of a strong United States of America under President Trump’s decisive leadership.”

Zelenskyy later wrote that he had spoken to Trump and congratulated him on “his historic landslide victory—his tremendous campaign made this result possible. I praised his family and team for their great work. We agreed to maintain close dialogue and advance our cooperation.”

No congratulations were forthcoming from Moscow, where President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, declared that Russia-U.S. relations were at the “lowest point in history.”

European leaders rushed to congratulate Trump even before his victory was officially declared — some more effusively than others.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called it a “historic election victory” and said that “as the closest of allies, the U.K. and U.S. will continue to work together to protect our shared values of freedom and democracy.”

Like governments of U.S. allies around the world, Starmer’s center-left administration has worked hard to forge ties with Trump and his team. Starmer had dinner with Trump at Trump Tower in September.

France’s centrist President Emmanuel Macron offered congratulations, “respect and ambition.” Social Democratic German Chancellor Olaf Scholz congratulated Trump and said he wanted continued close ties, even if “surely many things will be different under a Donald Trump-led administration.”

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, whose far right-led government is in some ways close to Trump politically, said Italy and the U.S. had a “strategic bond, which I am sure we will now strengthen even more.”

European leaders are keen to stress that the transatlantic relationship transcends individual politicians, but Trump’s protectionist economic leanings are causing concern. During his last term he slapped tariffs on European steel and aluminum, roiling the bloc’s economy.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stressed that the EU and the U.S. "are bound by a true partnership between our people, uniting 800 million citizens. Let us work together on a transatlantic partnership that continues to deliver for our citizens.”

Europe’s populist politicians, meanwhile, welcomed the victory of a kindred spirit.

“They threatened him with prison, they took his property, they wanted to kill him ... and he still won,” said Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who will hold a summit in Budapest for some 50 European leaders on Thursday.

During his first term, Trump pushed to remake the Middle East by reconciling Israel and Saudi Arabia, and all eyes now are on how he intervenes in the region’s raging conflicts between Israel and Hamas in Gaza and Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon — and the chief backer of the two militant groups, Iran.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Trump’s election win “history’s greatest comeback.”

“Your historic return to the White House offers a new beginning for America and a powerful recommitment to the great alliance between Israel and America. This is a huge victory!” he wrote on social media.

Trump and Netanyahu — a fellow conservative nationalist — had a tight relationship during the former president’s first term, but the ties soured when Netanyahu congratulated President Joe Biden on winning in 2020.

Netanyahu’s inner circle hopes Trump will allow Israel free rein against its enemies, but the president-elect is famously unpredictable, and the Israeli leader faces strong opposition at home. On Tuesday he fired popular Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, a surprise announcement that sparked protests across the country.

Hamas issued a terse statement saying, “Our position on the new U.S. administration depends on its positions and practical behavior towards our Palestinian people, their legitimate rights and their just cause.”

Washington is one of the key mediators of so-far unsuccessful Gaza cease-fire talks. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, another key player in regional peace efforts who had close ties to Trump during his first administration, said Egypt looked forward “to arriving together at achieving peace and preservation of stability in the region.”

Other African leaders, including South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, also sent congratulations.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping called for the U.S. and China to manage their differences and get along in a new era in a congratulatory message to Trump.

He told Trump that history has shown that both sides gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation, according to Chinese state media.

But analysts in China were pessimistic, citing the likelihood of escalating tariffs and an intensifying confrontation over Taiwan.

“It is not all dark, but there are more challenges than opportunities,” said Da Wei, director of the Center for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University in Beijing. “We are clear about the challenges. As for opportunities, we are yet to see them clearly.”

Long-seething territorial disputes in the South China Sea are a fault line in the U.S.-China rivalry in Asia and likely will remain a major foreign policy concern for the next American president.

Asian leaders apprehensive about China’s growing clout and North Korea's nuclear program, clamored for Trump’s attention in congratulatory messages.

“I hope to closely cooperate with President-elect Trump to further elevate Japan-U.S. alliance and relations to even higher levels,” Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said the Korea-U.S. alliance “will shine brighter,” under Trump's ”strong leadership."

But Phillips O’Brien, professor of strategic studies at the University of St. Andrews, said Washington’s allies in the Indo-Pacific, including Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and even Australia, “can no longer look for the U.S.A. to be a reliable partner in defense.”

The United States’ neighbors in the Americas, some of whom bore the impact of Trump's protectionist instincts during his first term, also braced for uncertainty.

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum told Mexicans “there is no reason to worry,” despite Trump’s previous threats to impose trade tariffs on Mexican products unless the country does more to stem the flow of migrants and drugs to the U.S.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau — previously derided by Trump as “weak” and “dishonest” — wrote on X: “The friendship between Canada and the U.S. is the envy of the world. I know President Trump and I will work together to create more opportunity, prosperity, and security for both of our nations.”

Brazil’s left-leaning President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva congratulated Trump — despite having endorsed Kamala Harris days ago.

“Democracy is the voice of the people and must always be respected,” Lula said on X.

Associated Press writers around the world contributed to this story.

Pedestrians pass a digital screen showing news headlines about the U.S. election, in Leicester Square, in London, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Republican and Democratic Party pins are displayed at a venue as guests watch a television broadcast of U.S. elections in Hong Kong, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

A speech by Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump is broadcast live on a monitor in the trading hall of Deutsche Börse in Frankfurt, Germany, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (Boris Roessler/dpa via AP)

Pedestrians stand at the crossing in front the Rossiya Segodnya International Media Group building with a running news line about the U.S. elections, top, in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov)

A man checks his smartphone in a cafe as a television screen shows Donald Trump,Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024 in Paris. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Indian people watch results of U.S. elections on a television in Guwahati, India, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)

A screen shows live footage of Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speech during a news program in Nairobi, Kenya, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

A MIT Sim company broker watches monitors showing graphics of the stock market, in Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Pakistanis watch news channels broadcasting results of U.S. presidential elections, at a shop in Karachi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

Steve Baker, left, Claudine Earley and their dog Louis watch a television broadcast during a U.S. election viewing party at Mean Doses bar in Wellington, New Zealand on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Charlotte Graham-McLay)

A screens shows live footage of Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speech during a news program in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns watches with other attendees as voting results are displayed on screen at a reception for the U.S. presidential election held at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

American and Ukrainian flags placed in honour of fallen servicemen flutter in the wind in front of statue in central square, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal agents carrying out immigration arrests in Minnesota's Twin Cities region already shaken by the fatal shooting of a woman rammed the door of one home Sunday and pushed their way inside, part of what the Department of Homeland Security has called its largest enforcement operation ever.

In a dramatic scene similar to those playing out across Minneapolis, agents captured a man in the home just minutes after pepper spraying protesters outside who had confronted the heavily armed federal agents. Along the residential street, protesters honked car horns, banged on drums and blew whistles in attempts to disrupt the operation.

Video of the clash taken by The Associated Press showed some agents pushing back protesters while a distraught woman later emerged from the house with a document that federal agents presented to arrest the man. Signed by an immigration officer, the document — unlike a warrant signed by a judge — does not authorize forced entry into a private residence. A warrant signed by an immigration officer only authorizes arrest in a public area.

Immigrant advocacy groups have conducted extensive “know-your-rights” campaigns urging people not to open their doors unless agents have a court order signed by a judge.

But within minutes of ramming the door in a neighborhood filled with single-family homes, the handcuffed man was led away.

More than 2,000 immigration arrests have been made in Minnesota since the enforcement operation began at the beginning of December, said Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told Fox News on Sunday that the administration would send additional federal agents to Minnesota to protect immigration officers and continue enforcement.

The Twin Cities — the latest target in President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement campaign — is bracing for what is next after 37-year-old Renee Good was shot and killed by an immigration officer on Wednesday.

“We’re seeing a lot of immigration enforcement across Minneapolis and across the state, federal agents just swarming around our neighborhoods,” said Jason Chavez, a Minneapolis city councilmember. “They’ve definitely been out here.”

Chavez, the son of Mexican immigrants who represents an area with a growing immigrant population, said he is closely monitoring information from chat groups about where residents are seeing agents operating.

People holding whistles positioned themselves in freezing temperatures on street corners Sunday in the neighborhood where Good was killed, watching for any signs of federal agents.

More than 20,000 people have taken part in a variety of trainings to become “observers” of enforcement activities in Minnesota since the 2024 election, said Luis Argueta, a spokesperson for Unidos MN, a local human rights organization .

“It’s a role that people choose to take on voluntarily, because they choose to look out for their neighbors,” Argueta said.

The protests have been largely peaceful, but residents remained anxious. On Monday, Minneapolis public schools will start offering remote learning for the next month in response to concerns that children might feel unsafe venturing out while tensions remain high.

Many schools closed last week after Good’s shooting and the upheaval that followed.

While the enforcement activity continues, two of the state’s leading Democrats said that the investigation into Good's shooting death should not be overseen solely by the federal government.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and U.S. Sen. Tina Smith said in separate interviews Sunday that state authorities should be included in the investigation because the federal government has already made clear what it believes happened.

“How can we trust the federal government to do an objective, unbiased investigation, without prejudice, when at the beginning of that investigation they have already announced exactly what they saw — what they think happened," Smith said on ABC’s "This Week."

The Trump administration has defended the officer who shot Good in her car, saying he was protecting himself and fellow agents and that Good had “weaponized” her vehicle.

Todd Lyons, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, defended the officer on Fox News Channel’s “The Sunday Briefing.”

"That law enforcement officer had milliseconds, if not short time to make a decision to save his life and his other fellow agents,” he said.

Lyons also said the administration’s enforcement operations in Minnesota wouldn't be needed “if local jurisdictions worked with us to turn over these criminally illegal aliens once they are already considered a public safety threat by the locals.”

The killing of Good by an ICE officer and the shooting of two people by federal agents in Portland, Oregon, led to dozens of protests in cities across the country over the weekend, including New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and Oakland, California.

Contributing were Associated Press journalists Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis; Thomas Strong in Washington; Bill Barrow in Atlanta; Christopher Weber in Los Angeles; and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio.

A woman gets into an altercation with a federal immigration officer as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A federal immigration officer deploys pepper spray as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A family member, center, reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Bystanders are treated after being pepper sprayed as federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A family member reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Federal agents look on after detaining a person during a patrol in Minneapolis, Minn., Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)

Bystanders react after a man was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)

People stand near a memorial at the site where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)

A man looks out of a car window after being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Border Patrol agents detain a man, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

People shout toward Border Patrol agents making an arrest, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

Demonstrators protest outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey holds a news conference on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)

Protesters react as they visit a makeshift memorial during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)