U.S. Security Policy under Biden (WPR)

 

U.S. Security Policy Under Biden

April 12, 2021

President Joe Biden’s first priority upon taking office was to reassure U.S. allies of America’s ongoing security commitments, promising that “America is back.” But that may not offer them the comfort Biden thinks it will. Meanwhile, Biden will face immediate challenges about whether, and how, to proceed with U.S. troop withdrawals from Afghanistan and elsewhere, while also shoring up America’s security partnerships to deal with a rising China. Learn more when you subscribe to World Politics Review (WPR).

Despite entering office under an “America First” banner that seemed to herald a new era of isolationism, former President Donald Trump made less dramatic shifts on U.S. security policy than anticipated. He did manage to withdraw U.S. forces from Somalia, but only to see them restationed elsewhere in the region. Meanwhile U.S. troops are still reployed in Syria and Afghanistan. And though he hinted at military interventions in Venezuela and Iran, Trump proved reluctant to commit U.S. forces to another conflict. His major legacy, in fact, may be the damage he did to relationships with long-standing allies and partners, including Europe, South Korea and Japan. This explains why President Joe Biden made it a priority to reassure European allies of America’s ongoing security commitments, promising them shortly after taking office, “America is back. The trans-Atlantic alliance is back.” That may not offer European leaders the comfort Biden thinks it will. In the wake of Trump’s presidency and facing challenges that include a revanchist Russia as well as domestic and international terror threats, Europe is eager to assert its autonomy. A key question for the Biden presidency is whether a more autonomous Europe will be a more useful partner to the U.S., or simply further widen the gulf Trump created between the allies.

U.S. soldiers patrol on the outskirts of Spin Boldak, near the border with Pakistan, about 63 miles southeast of Kandahar, Afghanistan, Aug. 9, 2009 (AP photo by Emilio Morenatti).

On Afghanistan, Biden will soon have to decide whether he will honor the bargain that Trump struck with the Taliban and withdraw the 2,500 U.S. troops that remain there. It is a fateful decision, as America’s withdrawal is all but certain to result in a pitched battle for control of the country. Even as the Biden administration reckons with that possibility, U.S. diplomats are attempting to reenergize talks between Kabul and the Taliban, while drawing a wider pool of regional stakeholders into the negotiations. Trump’s legacy will also hang over Biden’s other early security considerations, including diplomatic reengagement with the regime in Iran. Trump’s maximum pressure approach, which included abandoning the 2015 deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program, appears to have backfired, as Tehran responded by expanding its nuclear activities and assuming a more aggressive regional posture. Biden has signaled a path back to diplomacy and, potentially, to the nuclear deal, but much work will remain to regain Tehran’s trust. Meanwhile, in addition to these legacy issues, Biden must work to deepen and expand America’s security partnerships in the face of the greatest challenge to U.S. global leadership since the end of the Cold War: an increasingly assertive China. That means continuing to shore up ties with America’s Asian allies, while also seeking to solidify nascent partnerships with regional powers—particularly India, but also Vietnam. That won’t be easy, given their reluctance to antagonize China, with which remains a principal trade partner for many. WPR has covered the U.S. military and its security strategy in detail and continues to examine key questions about what will happen next. How will Biden navigate the thorny challenge of finally winding down the war in Afghanistan? Can he reestablish trust among U.S. allies while still holding them to their burden-sharing promises? Will Biden succeed in deepening security partnerships in Asia without planting the seeds for a new Cold War with China? Below are some of the highlights of WPR’s coverage.

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Military Alliances and Security Partnerships On the security front, Biden’s sharpest break with his predecessor has been in working to restore and expand America’s military alliances and partnerships. Gone are the harsh tone and public criticisms of allies that characterized the Trump era. In their place is a more traditional approach to key partners in Europe and Asia, as well as efforts to solidify emerging partnerships with countries wary of China’s rise, particularly India. But doubts about America’s dependability, as well as persistent differences in interests and preferences, could make shoring up these relationships easier said than done. How Biden can address some of the structural obstacles to managing trans-Atlantic relations, in America Comes and Goes. Trans-Atlantic Tensions Are Forever How Biden could seize on a historic opportunity to deepen ties with India, in Will Biden Seize the Opportunity for an Alliance With India?  Why Germany will be a key U.S. partner for restoring trans-Atlantic ties, in How Germany Can Work With Biden to Rebuild Trans-Atlantic Ties What it will take to untangle relations with Turkey, in Why There’s No Easy Solution to the U.S.-Turkey Dispute Over the S-400 Military Interventions—and Withdrawals Afghanistan is not the only location where Biden must weigh the ongoing deployment of U.S. troops. Trump twice attempted to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria, only to reverse course after an outcry from within his own administration and the Republican Party. Biden will have to decide whether to maintain—or expand—the deployment of the roughly 600 American troops who remain in Syria, as well as whether to continue support operations in Iraq and West Africa, where U.S. troops are engaged in missions that, though largely invisible to the American public, are still potentially deadly. Why there are no good outcomes of a U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, in The U.S. Must Prepare for the Worst in Afghanistan What it will take to bring the fighting to a halt in Yemen, in Ending Yemen’s Multilayered War Why Biden will have to choose between bad options on withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan, in Biden Must Make Hard Choices Quickly on Afghanistan How Trump’s withdrawal of U.S. forces from Somalia created another potential challenge for Biden, in The Dangers of Trump’s Hasty Troop Withdrawal From Somalia