In a world at peace in Ukraine and Sudan, Biden will speak about his legacy in foreign policy on Monday at State Department. The speech is expected to be centered on the investment of his administration in strong global allies and his attempts to reclaim America’s leadership in the world.
In the four years since Mr. Biden’s election, he has sought to reassure allies around the world and restore foreign treaties that were withdrawn by Trump. In response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the president established strong relationships with the leaders of NATO nations and re-entered the Paris Climate Agreement. The world has been preparing to change as President-elect Donald Trump is about to be inaugurated.
Mr. Biden will likely argue that U.S. outreach around the world is what is going to safeguard American interests, not isolationism.
According to a recent interview with USA Today, the president said that he helped restore ties that were strained during the Trump administration. He also claimed that he managed a “turning point” in human history. He said that his experience in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee helped him to “navigate fundamental changes, whether they are in Europe, Latin America, the Middle East or Far East.”
He told USA Today’s Susan Page that he had known all the major world leaders for a very long time. “I had an understanding of each leader and their interests.”
In 2021 Mr. Biden’s first foreign policy address as president, he argued for a foreign policies for the middle-class. It was intended to focus on China and repair alliances, but the crises in Ukraine & Middle East disrupted it.
Stephen Wertheim is a senior fellow and historian at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He says that “the United States are in a worse position geopolitically today than they were four years ago.” The United States is involved in a war in Europe with serious risks of escalation; it is back to bombing in the Middle East without an end in sight, and it has engaged in a full spectrum strategic rivalry with China.
Ukraine, Russia and NATO
Mr. Biden is a strong supporter of Ukraine. He was the first U.S. president to visit a conflict area where U.S. forces were not present. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2021, he has directed over $183 billion in military aid. He was instrumental in convincing NATO to increase spending on collective defence.
But the battle on the frontlines continues with no plan for peace. Washington deferred to Kyiv when and how the negotiations should be held with the tagline, “Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine.”
Early in the conflict, the administration was criticized for not sending the most deadly weapons. Later, some Republicans criticized the spending of too much money for Ukraine aid.
CBS News reports that Mr. Biden will argue his policies have helped ensure the survival of Ukraine’s independence and defeated Putin’s goals.
Israel-Hamas War
After Hamas’ attack on Israel in 2023 that resulted in the deaths of over 1,200 civilians (Hamas, Oct. 7, 2023) Mr. Biden stated that Israel had the right to defend themselves, with his administration providing billions of dollars of military aid.
The administration didn’t change its position when Israel launched a military offensive on Gaza, which according to Hamas and the Gazan Health Ministry has resulted in the deaths of more than 45,000 civilians.
In April 2023 Mr. Biden informed Benjamin Netanhayu, the Israeli Prime Minister that the future U.S. assistance to his country would be contingent on Israel’s protection of civilians and aid workers within Gaza.
Wertheim stated that Biden “voluntarily threw his leverage away by immediately pledging to support Israel’s military. He then criticised the Israeli government from a self-imposed position of indifference.”
The State Department informed Congress this month about a planned arms transfer of $8 billion to Israel. Israel and Hamas are still in the midst of ceasefire negotiations as pressure increases to reach a deal before Trump’s January 20th inauguration.
Afghanistan withdrawal: chaotic chaos
The U.S. withdrawal in 2021 from Afghanistan was the most obvious failure of foreign policy.
Mr. Biden promised to end America’s longest war, and assured Americans the Afghan military could hold off a Taliban invasion. The Taliban took over Kabul and expanded their control across the country faster than the U.S. had anticipated. The U.S. evacuated 125,000 people in a frenzied manner, including 6,000 Americans. However, dozens of Afghans were and 13 U.S. soldiers killed by a suicide attack near the Hamid Karzai Airport in Kabul, as thousands fled the country.
U.S. Citizens and Afghan Allies who supported American Troops throughout the War were Left Behind The Taliban threatened retribution against thousands of Americans who had supported them throughout the war.
The evacuation was marred by images of Afghans trying to escape on military planes and U.S. weapons that the Taliban had left behind.
Al Qaeda, as well as other terrorist organizations, have set up shop in Afghanistan in the past three years. Afghan women and girls are no longer able to enjoy the basic freedoms that they had enjoyed for two decades under the Western-backed government after the U.S. led invasion of 2001.
China
Trump started a trade conflict with China during his first term. He imposed tariffs to discourage what he viewed as unfair trade practices, and to encourage American businesses and consumers to buy and sell goods produced in the United States. Biden changed his rhetoric, but he continued to pursue the tariff policy. Both the Trump and Biden administrations viewed China not only as an economic threat but also as a national security one.
The Biden administration implemented safeguards to protect industries such as chip production against relying on China. The Quad alliance – U.S. India Japan Australia – and AUKUS (Australia, U.S.A., and U.K.) have made significant diplomatic and military progress in deterring China. The Biden administration also strengthened its military alliance between Japan and the United States.
Biden was Vice President when Barack Obama, the former president, delivered his speech on “pivot towards Asia”. Since then, American policymakers have tried to shift the focus of their foreign policy. However, there have been many distractions.
The United States cannot expect China to be a priority while it remains the dominant military power in Europe or the Middle East. Wertheim stated that if the United States really wants to prioritise China, they need to pull back elsewhere.
