Trumponomics as the apotheosis of economic and technological nationalism

The paper describes, using the example of the US “America First” policy, a global trend of the 2020s - the revival of economic nationalism (EN). We demonstrate how security imperatives are becoming central to economic strategies, with the weaponization of countries’ economic interdependencies emerging as a distinctive policy instrument. We examine the contemporary model of EN, identifying its key features and instruments, with particular emphasis on technological nationalism as its core component. This analytical framework helps us to reveal the contradictory nature of Trumponomics (the President Trump’s course since 2025), the trap of irreconcilable technological rivalry between the US and China, and the risks of Trump’s ‘bilateral deals” for the global economy. We find that nations’ transition under the EN doctrine from liberal principles of economic openness and free trade to protectionist and self-sufficiency ideologies entails the accumulation of economic inefficiencies. This trend can ultimately undermine countries’ ability to achieve those very goals of sustainable and secure development for which they have made this policy shift.