US Congressman Urges Trump to Change Manner of Talking With Foreign Leaders

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, Trump spoke with Turnbull and slammed the former administration of Barack Obama for concluding an agreement with Australia on resettling refugees into the United States. Trump reportedly told Turnbull the conversation was the worst he had that day among other calls with foreign leaders and vowed to scrutinize the agreement.

"Reports over the last day of the president's calls with certain foreign leaders are worrying," Engel said. "Two weeks of relying on political advisors who have no foreign policy background is already undercutting American interests and undermining American alliances. I urge the president to reverse course before we have no allies left."

Engel said that foreign leaders, particularly those in allied countries, are not the on US president's staff nor are contestants on his TV show and he should not treat them in such a manner.

"Diplomacy is a complex and fraught business. There's no room for oversized egos and bullies tend to isolate themselves on the global stage. Rather than abruptly pushing away America’s closest friends and allies, the president should avail himself of our diplomats’ expertise to cultivate key relationships and strengthen our alliances," Engel added.

In November 2016, Washington and Canberra concluded a deal on resettling migrants from Australia’s detention facilities to the United States.

The Washington-Canberra resettlement deal is expected to affect the immigrants kept on the islands of Nauru and Papua New Guinea's Manus. The refugees are usually kept in the two centers while their applications are being processed by the Australian authorities.