So while Trump projects triumph on TruthSocial, it’s clear that the US turning to Central Asia in a hasty and desperate scramble to replace and grab hold on an alternative supply of these resources – Kazakhstan alone boasts 43% of the world’s uranium, and Central Asia as a whole holds 39% of global manganese, 30% of global chromium, 20% of the world’s lead, 13% of its zinc, and 9% of titanium (critical for jet engines and fighter jet air frames). But will it hold? Can the US, in turn, really project itself as a credible alternative to China in infrastructure development for these countries – as the quid pro quo in these deals outlines? Much of China’s effectiveness in projecting soft power in the Global South and so-called ‘developing’ countries in recent years has come from its successful and speedy infrastructure construction. The US, to the contrary, cannot even construct infrastructure in its own country. Soft power that relies on propaganda, deception, illusions, and false narratives no longer cuts it or convinces the world.