WASHINGTON (AP) – U.S. relations with its two biggest geopolitical rivals are facing severe tests as President Joe Biden tries to assert America’s place in the world and stand out from his predecessor.
This past week, the Biden administration adopted a myriad of complaints and adopted an extraordinarily hard line with China and Russia. Public spaces erupted between countries when Biden characterized Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “murderer” and its top national security aides excoriated China for a litany of questions.
Moscow and Beijing both shot up and set the stage for months, if not more, of escalating tensions that are unlikely to be resolved without intense leadership-level discussions and large concessions from all parties.
Biden himself began the final round of recrimination in a television interview in which he tried to establish clear differences between his policies in Russia and those of former President Donald Trump. whom they accused of being gentle with Putin. Just 24 hours later, Biden’s top diplomat and national security adviser attacked Chinese officials in face-to-face talks.
While Biden’s strong comments about Putin reflected a shift in Trump’s often conciliatory approach to the Kremlin, harsh criticism of China by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan reflected in many ways the hard line of the previous administration to Beijing.
Contrasting styles suggest that Biden intends to reverse years of perceiving U.S. weakness toward Russia, while dismissing accusations of Trump’s 2020 campaign that it is not hard enough with China.
In adopting a firm line on Russia, Biden has said that the days of the United States “passing” on Putin are over. And in an interview with ABC on Wednesday, Biden said “yes” when asked if he thought Putin was a “killer.” Russia responded by recalling its ambassador to Washington for consultations.
Putin then fired, pointing to the history of U.S. slavery, the killing of Native Americans, and the atomic bombing of Japan during World War II in a response “one is needed to know.”
As it unfolded on Thursday in Alaska, China’s two top diplomats reacted similarly to Blinken and Sullivan’s criticisms of Beijing’s human rights record in the western Xinjiang region and Tibet and its aggressive actions in Hong Kong, Taiwan and the South China Sea. .
Communist Party foreign policy chief Yang Jiechi and Foreign Minister Wang Yi accused the United States of hypocrisy in condemning China and at the same time tackling its own internal problems, including violence against Asian Americans and others of color and political unrest after the 2020 presidential election.
Blinken and Sullivan ignored these comments and responded that the United States was not perfect, but tried to address these issues openly and honestly. Sullivan said the willingness of Americans to address their shortcomings was the “secret sauce” of U.S. success.
And, they tried to rethink US-China relations in the context of the Biden administration’s resolution to correct these problems, strengthen the U.S. economy, and improve ties with democratic allies in Asia such as Australia, Japan, and South Korea. .
Blinken, just finishing a trip to Japan and South Korea with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, made it clear to the Chinese that the U.S. is aligned with its allies.
“I have to tell you that what I hear is very different from what you described,” he told Wang and Yang. “I am deeply pleased that the United States has returned, because we are once again committed to our allies and partners. I am also deeply concerned about some of the actions your government has taken. “
Blinken seems to have impressed his head. “I am very proud of the Secretary of State,” Biden said after the difficult talks in Anchorage.
A similar effort is being made in Europe with allies with respect to Russia.
Blinken will travel to Brussels on Monday for talks with NATO and European Union officials designed to repair the strains caused by much of Trump’s transactional diplomacy. Trump’s uproar, threats of trade wars, and intense demands for Europe to pay more for his defense angered many, especially the continent’s two major powers: France and Germany.
This trip aims to underline the “determination of the Biden administration to strengthen the transatlantic alliance and reinvigorate our ties with allies through NATO” in view of the challenges posed by both Russia and China. , said the State Department.
Russia’s relations with the United States and the European Union had already fallen to post-Cold War lows after Moscow’s annexation of the Ukrainian Crimean peninsula in 2014, interfering in elections, piracy attacks and, more recently, in prison of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny after his poisoning, which he blamed on the Kremlin. Russian authorities have denied the allegations.
The U.S. national intelligence director’s office then released a report stating that Putin authorized influence operations to help re-elect Trump. The Biden administration warned that Russia would soon face sanctions for its attempt to influence the election and widespread attacks by SolarWinds.
“(Putin) will pay a price,” Biden said in the ABC interview when asked about the declassified report.