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Personal U.S. Senator from Delaware 47th Vice President of the United States Vice presidential campaigns 46th President of the United States Tenure   | ||
Theforeign policy of theJoe Biden administration emphasized the repair of theUnited States' alliances, whichBiden argued were damaged during thefirst Trump administration.[1][2] The administration's goal was to restore the United States to a "position of trusted leadership" among globaldemocracies in order to address challenges posed byRussia andChina.[1][3][4][5] Both Biden and hisSecretary of DefenseLloyd Austin repeatedly emphasized that no other world power should be able to surpass the United States, either militarily or economically.[6] Biden's foreign policy has been described as having ideological underpinnings in mid-twentieth centuryliberal internationalism,American exceptionalism, andpragmatism.[7][8]
Once assuming office, President Biden sought to strengthen thetransatlantic alliance between the U.S. and Europe.[1][4] He reaffirmed the United States' commitment to theNATO alliance andcollective security.[9] Additionally, Biden reinstated the U.S. as a member of theParis Climate Agreement[5] and implemented a variety of other measures to addressclimate change.[10][11][12] The administration placed great emphasis on international cooperation in combating theCOVID-19 pandemic,[1][13] as well as bolstering U.S. defenses against foreign-sponsoredcyberattacks,cyber espionage,[14][15][16] andtrade andindustrial policy competition.[17][18]
Biden's extensive experience in foreign affairs included serving as thechairman orranking member of theSenate Foreign Relations Committee for twelve years. He also played a significant role in shapingforeign policy during the Obama presidency.[19][20] The Biden administration upheld policies that enjoy bipartisan consensus, particularly those related tocompetition with China and the reduction of U.S. military presence in theGreater Middle East.[21][22]
Key advisors in Biden's U.S. foreign policy team includedSecretary of StateAntony Blinken, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, andNational Security AdvisorJake Sullivan.[23] Biden has received a mixed reception for his response to theRussian invasion of Ukraine, receiving praise for his support of Ukraine and NATO and criticism for his vague aims in the conflict and limitations in assistance to Ukraine.[24][25][26][27] Critics have faulted him for a perceived mismatch between his objectives and the resources allocated for defense budgets, trade policies, stability in the Middle East, and the promotion of human rights.[28]
| Biden administration Foreign Policy Personnel | ||
|---|---|---|
| Vice President | Kamala Harris (2021–2025) | |
| White House Chief of Staff | Ron Klain (2021–2023) | Jeff Zients (2023–2025) |
| Secretary of State | Antony Blinken (2021–2025) | |
| Secretary of Defense | Lloyd Austin (2021–2025) | |
| Ambassador to the United Nations | Linda Thomas-Greenfield (2021–2025) | |
| Director of National Intelligence | Avril Haines (2021–2025) | |
| Director of the Central Intelligence Agency | William Burns (2021–2025) | |
| Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs | Jake Sullivan (2021–2025) | |
| Deputy National Security Advisor | Jonathan Finer (2021–2025) | |
| Trade Representative | Katherine Tai (2021–2025) | |
Brazil–U.S. relations have undergone a notable shift under theBiden administration, reflecting both cooperation and occasional differences on various issues. During the previous administration, then-Brazilian PresidentJair Bolsonaro, aright-wingpopulist and ally of his predecessor,Donald Trump, enjoyed close ties with the United States.[29][30][31][32] However, following President Biden's election, a recalibration in US-Brazil relations became apparent. Challenges arose at first due to the two leaders' ideological differences and Bolsonaro's praise for Trump and baseless allegations about the legitimacy of Biden's election.[33][34] Despite the differences, both Biden and Bolsonaro expressed a willingness to collaborate on climate change andenvironmental protection.[34]
After theelection of the current Brazilian PresidentLuiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a left-wing former president, the relationship between the two countries shifted again.[35] In a meeting between the two leaders in February 2023, Biden and da Silva both signified a renewed emphasis on collaboration and dialogue between the two countries. President Biden emphasized that fostering dialogue, peace, and democracy in Brazil has been a key priority for the United States.[35]
Addressing climate change andenvironmental stewardship, particularly in theAmazon rainforest, emerged as a crucial area for both Biden and da Silva. President da Silva's administration has committed to significant changes inBrazil's environmental approach, including combatingdeforestation and achieving "zero deforestation" by 2030.[35] These environmental goals align closely with President Biden's priorities, offering potential avenues for collaboration between the two nations.[35]
Nevertheless, differences between the leaders have arisen on certain issues. Notably, there are diverging views regarding China and theRussian invasion of Ukraine. President da Silva has exhibited caution in openly criticizing China, as it isBrazil's largest trading partner.[35] Additionally, Brazil has shown reluctance to fully endorse US calls for greater opposition to Russia's war in Ukraine.[35]
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Biden's first foreign leader call was withCanadian Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau on January 22, 2021. The call followed Biden's announcement of the cancellation of theKeystone Pipeline. Biden explained that he was following through on a campaign promise and restoring a decision made by the former Obama administration while acknowledging that the decision will cause hardship to Canada.[36] Issues discussed included theCOVID-19 pandemic and economic recovery therein, climate change and environmental issues,NATO,indigenous issues, and other international relations.[36] In her first briefing, White House Secretary Psaki noted focus on foreign relations would be with friends and allies of the United States saying: "I would expect his early calls will be with partners and allies. He feels it's important to rebuild those relationships."[37]
Biden held his firstbilateral meeting with Prime Minister Trudeau on February 23, 2021, virtually.[38] Issues discussed were COVID-19, climate change, detention of theTwo Michaels in China, the future ofNORAD, systemic racism and gender equality.[39][40][41]
Biden admitted that theUSMCA negotiated by the Trump administration was "better thanNAFTA"[42][43] In November 2021, Biden hosted the first "Three Amigos" meeting since 2016. Trudeau accused Biden's tax-credit proposal for union-made electric vehicles of breaking the USMCA rules. Economic tensions arose from protectionist measures and trade incentives for American industry as part of Biden's "Buy American" campaign.[44]
Despite Duque's party supportingDonald Trump during the2020 US presidential election,Duque maintained very good relations under the presidency ofJoe Biden. TheBiden administration showed signs of favoring right-wing candidates in theColombian presidential election of 2022: senior US diplomats spoke to the press about alleged Russian, Cuban and Venezuelan interference in the election in favor of leftist candidateGustavo Petro, while US officials avoided meeting Petro before the election while meeting other candidates.[45]On 20 April 2023, he met with the president of the United States,Joe Biden, at theWhite House,[46] where topics such as decarbonization, the construction of a green economy in America, andelectrical transmission at the continental level were discussed. payment of foreign debt through actions againstclimate change.[47]
Among the conclusions, the United States promised an investment of US$500 million for the Amazon Fund, as part of the efforts of the two nations to faceclimate change. With this contribution, the United States would be one of the largest donors to this international conservation program, which was established during the previous term of PresidentLuiz Inácio Lula da Silva to protect theAmazon rainforest fromdeforestation.[48][49]
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Later he had a meeting with the former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives,Nancy Pelosi,[50] where he reiterated the need for United States support for the agrarian reform proposed by the administration.[51][52]
The Biden administration has continued the American policy of support forNicaraguancivil society groups, human rights, and free elections against a government accused ofhuman rights violations, political suppression, and corruption.[53] An extremely controversial attempt by longtime NicaraguanSandinista PresidentDaniel Ortega to cut social benefits[54] led towidespread protests and a crackdown against opposition politicians, protesters, and press condemned by anInter-American Commission on Human Rights task force and theOrganization of American States as involvingcrimes against humanity and violations ofhuman rights.[55][56]
The administration has expressed "[deep] concern about the escalating crackdown" and called for Ortega to reverse course. In a June 22, 2021United Nations Human Rights Council meeting, the United States joined 58 other countries to call for the release ofjailed presidential candidates and dissidents and rehabilitation of Nicaraguan democracy. On July 12, 2021, theState Department imposed visa restrictions on 100Nicaraguan legislature andjudiciary accused of enabling "attacks on democracy and human rights" by Ortega andMurillo, Ortega's wife andVice President.[57][58] Biden'sFY2022 budget request included $15 million of aid for Nicaragua, all of which will be directed towards democracy and rights programs.[56] On August 6, 2021, the State Department placed visa restrictions on 50 immediate family members of Nicaraguan officials accused of benefiting from Ortega's regime;[59] this came amidst an upcomingNovember 2021 election in which many opposition candidates have been arrested or barred from running.[60]
Several bills proposed by the117th Congress concern U.S. relations with Nicaragua, particularly with regards to Nicaraguan democracy and respect for human rights.[56]
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TheNorthern Triangle refers to the threeCentral American countries ofHonduras,El Salvador, andGuatemala, usually in reference to the nations' poverty, political instability, and crime/violence as motivating factors of their residents' legal andillegalimmigration to the United States.[61]
Mexican PresidentLópez Obrador said that President Biden has pledged $4 billion for development in Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala.[62] Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on February 6 that agreements with those three countries to send asylum-seekers back to those countries until their cases were heard were suspended.[63]
Vice PresidentKamala Harris visited Guatemala as part of her first foreign trip in office. In Guatemala City, Harris held a joint press conference with Guatemalan PresidentAlejandro Giammattei where she issued an appeal to potential migrants, stating "I want to be clear to folks in the region who are thinking about making that dangerous trek to the United States-Mexico border: Do not come. Do not come."[64]
The Biden administration has maintained most of the sanctions againstCuba that were issued by thefirst Trump administration, despite one of Biden's campaign promises being to lift restrictions against the country.[65][66]
In June 2021, the Biden administration continued America's tradition of voting against an annual United Nations General Assembly resolution calling for an end to theU.S. economic embargo against Cuba.[67] The resolution was adopted for the 29th time with 184 votes in favor, three abstentions, and two no votes: the U.S. and Israel.[68]
In July 2021, protesters gathered in front of the White House and demonstrators called on President Joe Biden to take action in Cuba.[69] The Biden administration sanctioned a key Cuban official and a government special forces unit known as the Boinas Negras for human rights abuses in the wake of historic protests on the island.[70] On July 22, 2021, directly before hosting a meeting withCuban American leaders,[71] President Biden stated "I unequivocally condemn the mass detentions and sham trials that are unjustly sentencing to prison those who dared to speak out in an effort to intimidate and threaten the Cuban people into silence."[72] President Biden has also ordered government specialists to develop ideas for the U.S. to unilaterally extend internet access on the island, and he has promised to enhance backing for Cuban dissidents.[73]
In August 2021, Biden sanctioned three additional Cuban officials who were also reportedly involved in the suppression of anti-government protesters in Cuba.[74]
In December 2021, 114 Democratic House members signed a letter that urged President Biden to lift restrictions and sanctions against Cuba in order to make their access to food and medicine easier.[66]
In January 2022, Biden again sanctioned Cuba officials, this time placing travel restrictions on eight members of the Cuban government.[75]
In May 2022, the Biden administration lifted some of the sanctions, with policy changes such as expansion of flights to Cuba and resumption of a family reunification program. In January 2023, the Biden administration made changes to its immigration policy, to limit the amount of Cuban migrants entering the United States.
In the final week of his presidency, the Biden administration removed Cuba from thestate sponsors of terrorism list, in concert with a prisoner exchange, brokered by the Vatican.[76]
Biden condemned theassassination of HaitianpresidentJovenel Moïse in2021.[77] He later announced that he would be sending troops to guard the embassy inPort-au-Prince.[78] TheHaitian government asked the US, as well as theUnited Nations andCanada, for more troops, but this was rejected.[79]
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Biden had a call withMexican PresidentAndrés Manuel López Obrador on January 22, 2021. On the call they spoke of issues such as regionality and regional migration, reducingimmigration across theMexico–U.S. border by targeting the root cause, increasingresettlement capacity, providing legal alternatives for immigration pathways, improving the treatment of immigrants at the border, adequate arbitration of requests forasylum, reversal of the Trump administration's immigration policies, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Obrador said the call was "pleasant and respectful" and that relations betweenMexico and the U.S. would improve in the future.[80][81][82]
Biden held his bilateral meeting with President Obrador on March 1, 2021, virtually.[83]
On January 17, 2024, a Republican-led non-binding resolution denouncing the Biden-Harris administration's handling of the Mexico–United States border passed theHouse of Representatives by a vote of 225–187, with 211 Republicans and 14 Democrats supporting it.[84][85][86]
On February 13, 2024,Secretary of Homeland SecurityAlejandro Mayorkas wasimpeached on a 214-213 party-line vote by theUnited States House of Representatives over his handling of the Mexico–United States border.[87]
On July 25, 2024, theUnited States House of Representatives voted 220–196 to pass another Republican-led resolution condemning the Biden-Harris administration for their handling of the Mexico–United States border. Six Democrats voted with all Republicans in the House to pass the resolution.[88][89]
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President Biden has received substantial criticism due to his administration's open support for Peruvian PresidentDina Boluarte, whose government has widely been described asauthoritarian.[90][91][92]
With respect to thecrisis in Venezuela, Biden retained a hard-line approach, continuing to recognize opposition leaderJuan Guaidó as the legitimate president of Venezuela and declining to directly negotiate with PresidentNicolás Maduro.[93][94] The U.S. State Department emphasized that "Maduro is a dictator" and that theregime's repression andcorruption created a humanitarian catastrophe.[93] The administration indicated that it would not rush to liftU.S. sanctions on Venezuela, but would consider easing sanctions if Maduro took "serious steps" to negotiate seriously with the opposition.[94] The administration continued support forhumanitarian aid to Venezuela.[94] In early March 2021, the administration grantedTemporary Protected Status for an 18-month period to Venezuelans who were already living in the U.S., having fled the Maduro regime due to the country's economic collapse and repression.[95]
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In May 2021 theUnited States and other countries denounced Belarus' authorities forcingRyanair Flight 4978 to land in Belarus' territory.[96][97][98][99][100][101]
On 28 February 2022, the United States suspended its embassy in Belarus following intelligence fromUkraine that the country was preparing to join with its allyRussia ininvading Ukraine.[102]
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Some analysts and diplomats say the proposedComprehensive Agreement on Investment between China and theEuropean Union may damage relations with the United States as the EU hands China a political win at the expense of incoming president Biden.[103][104][105] In December 2020,Jake Sullivan, Biden'snational security adviser, said he would welcome "early consultation" with Europe on China. However, instead of holding off for Biden to take office to devise a common approach toward China, the EU agreed to the deal anyway.[106]
In the calls with the European leaders, President Biden spoke of bilateral relations, bolstering transatlantic relations throughNATO and theEuropean Union, and closely coordinating on key issues, such as Iran, China, Russia, Afghanistan,climate change, theCOVID-19 pandemic andmultilateral organizations.[107][108][109][110]
President Biden promised to repair "strained" relationships with European allies in contrast to his predecessor, Trump.[111] At theMunich Security Conference, Biden warned that "Putin seeks to weaken the European project and our NATO alliance." Biden called for multilateralism to strengthen the defensive position and economic power of the transatlantic alliance, and solve global problems like the COVID pandemic and climate change.[112]
However, in late 2022 and 2023, the Biden administration implemented theCHIPS and Science Act (partly to counter theEuropean Chips Act) andInflation Reduction Act, both of which included measures to improve the U.S. domestic research sector, build domestic supply chains, and increase business and consumer tax incentives solely for American-madesemiconductors,renewable energy, andelectric vehicles, among others. The EU member states' finance ministers have complained against these measures, claiming the United States is implementing harmfulprotectionist measures.[113][114] The European Commission has responded by proposing the Net Zero Industry Act as part of theEuropean Green Deal. Biden andPresident of the European CommissionUrsula von der Leyen agreed on March 10, 2023, to negotiate a commoncritical minerals stockpile deal and reforms to their respectivegreen industrial policy packages.[115][116][117][118]
On August 3, 2022, theU.S. Senate unanimously approved Finland andSweden's accession bids to joinNATO.[119]U.S. PresidentJoe Biden approved the NATO membership of Finland and Sweden in August 2022.[120]
On December 18, 2023, the US (represented byAntony Blinken) and Finland (represented byAntti Häkkänen andElina Valtonen) signed aDefense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) inWashington, D.C.[121][122]
The agreement regulates the presence of the US armed forces and their dependents on the territory of the Finland, as well as the presence and activities of US suppliers on the territory of the Finland.
TheUnited States Ambassador to Finland isDoug Hickey[123]
President Biden visited Helsinki on July 12, 2023[124] and met with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö[125] and leaders of other Nordic nations, including Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. The purpose was to celebrate[126] Finland joining the NATO.
On January 24, 2021, Biden andFrench PresidentEmmanuel Macron had a phone call.[108]
In September 2021, the French ambassador was recalled to Paris after theAUKUS security pact had been made by Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. The measure was unprecedented; in almost 250 years of diplomatic relations, France had never before recalled its U.S. ambassadorship.[127] The Biden administration tried to placate French anger.[128][129]
In October 2021, Biden met with Macron and admitted that his administration was "clumsy" in its handling of the nuclear submarine deal with Australia, which deprived France of billions in defense contracts.[130]
On January 25, 2021, Biden andGerman ChancellorAngela Merkel had a phone call.[109]
In early February 2021, Biden froze the Trump administration's withdrawal of 9,500 troops from U.S. military bases in Germany,[131] Biden's freeze was welcomed by Germany, which said that the move "serves European and transatlantic security and hence is in our mutual interest."[132]
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Antony Blinken indicated American interest in robust ties between itself,Greece,Israel, andCyprus, in response to questioning bySenate Foreign Relations Committee chairBob Menendez regarding the Eastern Mediterranean Security and Energy Partnership Act.[133]On 13 October 2021, Greece and the U.S. upgraded their defense pact, signing an agreement that allows expanded access for U.S. troops to train and operate from four additional bases in Greece indefinitely. Greece also has a bilateral maritime defense pact with France, and the parties hold these pacts to be complementary to NATO.[134]
On March 17, 2021,St. Patrick's Day, Biden continued tradition by meeting with IrishTaoiseachMicheál Martin, though this time virtually due to the pandemic. They discussedCOVID-19, security issues andNorthern Ireland as Biden emphasized his support for theGood Friday Agreement. In an interview withMSNBC, Martin said that "In President Biden, we have perhaps the mostIrish American president sinceJohn F. Kennedy, and his election was greeted with great affection and warmth".[135]
After a St. Patrick's Day 2023 visit to the White House from new TaoiseachLeo Varadkar,[136] Biden visited Ireland from April 12 to 15, 2023, and met with PresidentMichael D. Higgins and Varadkar, and addressed theOireachtas soon after, to discuss the Good Friday Agreement's continuation, trade, tech and industrial policy, security issues, the Russo-Ukrainian war, and European Union-U.S. relations. Biden also toured the various Irish towns where his ancestors lived, and met with distant cousins.[137][138][139][140]
In February 2021, Biden sent letters toKosovo's acting PresidentVjosa Osmani andSerbian PresidentAleksandar Vučić, urging the normalization ofKosovo–Serbia relations based on "mutual recognition" and expressing support foreconomic normalization agreements; Biden's engagement with the issue signaled a new U.S. focus on European security.[141][142] Biden has said recognition of Kosovo is necessary for normalization ofSerbia–U.S. relations.[143]
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In July 2023, Lithuania hosted2023 Vilnius summit, receiving the US PresidentJoe Biden along with around 40 other leaders. During the visit, President Bidengave a speech inVilnius University.[144]
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In 2024, the Netherlands and the United States entered into security agreements withUkraine in response to theRussian invasion of Ukraine as part of a largerNATO initiative to supportUkraine with ammunition and weapons systems.[145] As part of the agreement the United States approved delivery of advancedF-16 fighter jets from the Netherlands to Ukraine.[146] The appointment ofMark Rutte asSecretary General of NATO was favored by theUnited States presidentJoe Biden.[147]
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President Biden visited Poland on March 25–26, 2022. He held talks with Polish leaders and metUkrainian refugees. He alsodelivered a speech in the courtyard ofRoyal Castle in Warsaw. He referred to the historical experiences of Poland, theRussian-Ukrainian war and the aggressive policy of Russia.[148] The purpose of Biden's trip to Poland was to express NATO's unity and the U.S. commitment to defend its allies.[149]
President Biden visited Poland for a second time February 20–22, 2023.
In 2024, theUS Government informed its Romanian counterpart that the Romanian Armed Forces can access funds for the modernization programs through theForeign Military Financing program. Under this program, the Romanian side can access up to 4 billion dollars in direct loans as well as up to 8 billion dollars attracted by contracting loans from thefinancial markets.[150]
Romania joined theVisa Waiver Program on January 10, 2025.[151]
Through 2020, Biden and Putin had met once, in Moscow in March 2011, when Biden was vice president and Putin was prime minister. After an official group meeting, which Biden characterized in his memoir as "argumentative," he and Putin met privately, with Biden saying "Mr. Prime Minister, I'm looking into your eyes," (a reference to a 2001 meeting between Putin and President Bush, who later said "I looked the man in the eye...I was able to get a sense of his soul"). Biden continued, "I don't think you have a soul." Putin replied, "We understand each other."[152]
As vice president, Biden had urged the Ukrainian government to eliminate middlemen such as oligarchDmytry Firtash from the country's natural gas industry, and to reduce the country's reliance on imports of Russian natural gas. Firtash has said he was installed as a middleman by Russian organized crime bossSemion Mogilevich; Putin agreed with the appointment. Since 2014, Firtash has been fighting extradition to the U.S. under a federal indictment.[153][154][155] He was involved in efforts byRudy Giuliani and his associates in seeking information that might damage Biden's 2020 presidential prospects.[153][156]
TheUnited States intelligence community found that Russian intelligence actors have been spreading narratives of alleged corruption about Biden, his family and Ukraine since at least 2014.[157][158]
On the day of Biden's inauguration, theRussian government urged the new U.S. administration to take a "more constructive" approach in talks over the extension of the2010 New START treaty, the sole remaining agreement limiting the number of U.S. and Russianlong-range nuclear warheads.[159] In Biden's first telephone call as president withRussian PresidentVladimir Putin, on January 26, 2021, Biden and Putin agreed to extend the New START treaty (which was set to expire in February 2021) by an additional five years.[160]
Biden and his administration condemned human rights violations by the Russian authorities, calling for the release of detained dissident and anti-corruption activistAlexei Navalny, his wife, and the thousands of Russians who haddemonstrated in his support; the U.S. called for the unconditional release of Navalny and the protestors and a credible investigation intoNavalny's poisoning.[161][162][163] On March 2, 2021, the U.S. and European Union imposed coordinated additional sanctions on Russian officials, as well as theFSB andGRU, over the Navalny poisoning and imprisonment. The State Department also expanded existing sanctions from the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act that had been imposed after the poisoning ofSkripal.[164]
The Biden administration is also planning to impose sanctions against Russia over the2020 SolarWinds cyberespionage campaign, which compromised the computer systems of nine federal agencies.[165] Biden's national security adviserJake Sullivan said that the response "will include a mix of tools seen and unseen, and it will not simply be sanctions."[165][164]
The Biden administration's comprehensive review into Russian activities has included an examination ofreports that the Russian government offered to Taliban-linked fighters to kill U.S. troops in Afghanistan.[166][167]
On March 16, 2021, aDNI report on the 2020 U.S. federal elections was declassified. It had confirmed that both the governments of Russia and Iranhad been attempting to influence the 2020 United States elections, with Putin approving the operation of influencing the elections.[168] Although no evidence was found of any votes, ballots, or registrations being directly changed by foreign actors, the assessment did find that Russian efforts were aimed at "denigrating President Biden's candidacy and the Democratic Party, supporting former President Trump, undermining public confidence in the electoral process, and exacerbating sociopolitical divisions in the US".[169] On the following day, Biden commented on the new information in an interview withABC News that Putin will "pay a price", also labeling Putin a "killer".[170][171]
Meeting withNATO allies in Brussels two days before his scheduled June 2021summit meeting with Russian presidentVladimir Putin, Biden refuted an assertion by Ukrainian presidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy that NATO had agreed to admit Ukraine to the alliance. Ukrainian allegiance has been a persistently contentious issue between Russia and the United States.[172][173]
Speaking to American military personnel in Britain en route to the summit, Biden said, "We're not seeking conflict with Russia. We want a stable predictable relationship. I've been clear: the United States will respond in a robust and meaningful way if the Russian government engages in harmful activities." He added he would "meet with Mr. Putin to let him know what I want him to know."[174]
Following the meeting, Biden stated to reporters that he warned Putin that the U.S. would use offensive cyber operations if Russia did not crack down on cyberattacks against "critical infrastructure."[175]
In May 2021, the Biden administration waived sanctions against the Russian-owned Nord Stream 2 pipeline.[176][177] In August 2021, the Biden administration imposed new specific sanctions on a Russian ship (Ostap Sheremeta) and two companies involved in the Nord Stream 2, while issuing an executive order that would allow for sanctions to be imposed on certain pipelines.[178]
The2021–2022 crisis between Russia and Ukraine, which involved Russian troops build up along the border, resulted in renewed tensions between Russia and NATO. On December 30, 2021, Biden and Putin discussed the crisis over the course of a 50-minute phone call.[179] Bilateral talks began inGeneva on January 10, 2022, to discuss concerns about Ukraine and Russia's concern of NATO postering in Eastern Europe.[180] The talks were led by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State,Wendy Sherman.[181] Biden warned of a "distinct possibility" Russia would invade Ukraine.[182] One week before theinvasion, Biden said there was a "very high" risk Russia would invade, and Blinken spoke at aUnited Nations Security Council meeting, saying he wants to prevent a war,[183] which he believed would start with a manufactured pretext for Russia to invade.[184]
Following theRussian invasion of Ukraine, Biden condemned Putin, calling him "the aggressor" and announcing additional sanctions on Russia.[185] On February 25, the White House announced the US would personally sanction Putin and foreign ministerSergey Lavrov.[186] Sanctions on Putin's inner circle were increased in multiple rounds over the following months.[187] On February 28, the Biden administration announced sanctions againstRussia's central bank, prohibiting Americans from doing business with the bank and freezing the bank's assets.[188] Additional sets of sanctions included a ban on Russian oil and gas imports.[189][190] On April 6, 2022, the White House said that the U.S., alongside the G7 and EU, had imposed "the most impactful, coordinated, and wide-ranging economic restrictions in history" and that day announced new sanctions in response to theBucha massacre.[191] In May, the rest of the G7 also committed to a phase out of Russian oil. The United States blocked various Russian bank entities.[192]
On 27 September 2022, White House press secretaryKarine Jean-Pierre encouraged Russian men fleeing their home country to avoid being drafted to apply forasylum in the United States.[193] In early 2023, the Biden administration resumed deportations of Russians whohad fled Russia to avoidmobilization in the Russian invasion of Ukraine andpolitical persecution.[194]
In October 2023, Biden asked Congress for $61 billion in funding for Ukraine during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[195] Biden signed a record $886 billiondefense spending bill into law on December 22, 2023.[196][197]
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On 28 June 2022, following a meeting of US presidentJoe Biden with Spanish prime ministerPedro Sánchez inLa Moncloa, both leaders issued a joint declaration to enhance the relations between both countries (updating the 2001 previous joint declaration signed byJosep Piqué andMadeleine Albright), which included an agreement on increasing the number of US warships in Rota and on the importance of permanent cooperation between both countries in response to the challenges of irregular immigration in North Africa.[198][199]
During theCold War, Swedendid not join NATO and maintained a neutral status between the Western and Eastern Bloc, although its democratic and mixed capitalist approach was generally more in tune with the West and the United States. After the end of theVietnam War, which was deeply unpopular in Sweden, relations between the two countries improved. The two countries have been largely friendly, and the United States supported Sweden'sNATO membership. Under a comprehensive mandate, Sweden's nonalignment policy has led it to serve as theprotecting power for the United States and to represent Washington inNorth Korea on consular matters.[200] On 3 August 2022, theU.S. Senate unanimously approvedFinland and Sweden's accession bids to joinNATO.[201] President Biden approved the NATO membership of Finland and Sweden in August 2022.[202]
Sweden'saccession into NATO was finalized on 7 March 2024.[203] The United States hasobserver status with the regionalBEAC andCBSS.
Biden pledged support for the sovereignty of Ukraine.[112] Biden also opposed theNord Stream 2 pipeline, describing it as a "bad deal for Europe". The pipeline project was criticized for the leverage it would have given to Russia in isolating Ukraine,[204] In 2021, a joint statement of the Ukrainian and Polish governments urged Biden to take more decisive action against Nord Stream 2.[205] During the2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis, Biden imposed sanctions on Nord Stream 2 in retaliation against Russian troop build ups in February 2022.[206]
Previously in March 2021, the Biden administration announced a $125 million military aid package to Ukraine, includingMark VI patrol boats, radars and medical equipment.[207] On September 1, 2021, President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met in the White House and discussed Euro-Atlantic cooperation. Various agreements were announced by the Biden administration. An additional $60 million in U.S. aid to Ukraine was announced, bringing the yearly total to over $400 million. Ukraine and the U.S. made a joint statement on strategic cooperation.[208] President Biden stated, "We're revitalizing the Strategic Partnership Commission between our nations." and promised to continue to provide COVID-19 vaccines to Ukraine following the 2.5 million sent.[209] The joint statement includes points such as "The United States and Ukraine continue to oppose Nord Stream 2, which we view as a threat to European energy security", endorsed theNormandy Format, and announced cooperation on cybersecurity, satellite awareness and R&D.[210]
Leading up to the Russian invasion, Biden repeatedly held up military aid to Ukraine, drawing frustration from Congress and the Ukrainian government. A $100 million aid package was held up in June 2021 and a $200 million package was held up in December 2021.[211][212][213] Biden also publicly announced that his response would vary in the event of a "minor incursion" from Russia, instead of a larger invasion, harming Ukrainian confidence in the Biden administration.[214][215]
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Biden supporteddefensive andhumanitarian aid to Ukraine. In March 2022, Biden supported the international response against Russia and pledged to accept 100,000Ukrainian refugees.[216] In May, he signed theUkraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022[217] and a $40 billion aid package for Ukraine.[218] From July, the Biden administration suppliedHIMARS to Ukraine.[219] On August 1, the State Department announced $550 million in security aid to Ukraine focused on supplies for HIMARS systems.[220][221] On July 6, 2023, President Biden approved the provision ofcluster munitions to Ukraine.[222] In 2022, Congress approved more than $112 billion in aid to Ukraine. In October 2023, the Biden administration requested $61.4 billion more for Ukraine for the year ahead.[223]
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The Biden administration has repeatedly opposed Ukraine utilizing US-provided equipment against military targets within Russia, citing concerns about escalation.[224][225][226][227] Deliveries of long-rangeATACMS missiles were blocked for over a year due to US concerns about potential Ukrainian strikes across the Russian border, and were only allowed on the condition that they never be used to hit targets within Russia.[228][229][230] The US has also refused to provide military intelligence to aid Ukraine in cross-border strikes.[231][232] After Ukraine struck targets inside Russia using its own drones, US officials, including Vice President Kamala Harris and national security adviser Jake Sullivan, urged Ukraine to cease the attacks.[233][234] Ukraine has criticized the restrictions on utilizing western-provided weapons against targets in Russian territory, with Zelenskyy saying that it was Russia's "biggest advantage" in the war.[228][235][236] Russia has utilized the restrictions on weapons usage to create safe zones for its military equipment and personnel just outside of Ukraine's borders. The restrictions have also been used by Russia to safely launch airstrikes, drone attacks, and missile strikes across its border with Ukraine, as well as its2024 Kharkiv offensive.[237][238][239][240] Ukrainian requests for exemptions to weapons restrictions have repeatedly been turned down. In June 2024, Ukraine missed an opportunity to destroy multiple RussianSU-34 fighter bombers near their border after a White House denial. In July, the Biden administration blocked a Ukrainian request to strike missile launch sites responsible for partially destroying a children's hospital in Kyiv.[241][242]
In addition to restrictions on provided weaponry, the Biden administration has also blocked or delayed deliveries of weapons systems altogether due to fears of escalation. Shortly before the 2022 invasion, the Biden administration blocked deliveries ofStinger andJavelin missiles, including attempted deliveries from Baltic allies.[24][26] Ukraine requestedF-16 fighters from the US since 2022, only receiving them in July 2024 after prior denials from the Biden administration.[243][244][245] The US has also blocked Poland from donating its ownMiG-29 fighters to Ukraine over escalation fears.[246] The Biden administration initially refused to send HIMARS to Ukraine, before allowing them after modifications were made to prevent any strikes against Russia itself.[247][248] Other weapons systems that were blocked or delayed for Ukraine includedPatriot surface-to-air missiles,M1 Abrams tanks, andGray Eagle drones.[249][26][250] Ukrainian officials have criticized the halting pace of weapons deliveries as contributing to battlefield losses.[251]
In 2022, Biden told Secretary of State Blinken and Secretary of Defense Austin to tone down their rhetoric after stating that the US would like to see a Ukrainian victory in its war with Russia.[252] Multiple foreign policy analysts have questioned whether Biden wishes to see Ukraine victorious, noting Biden's repeated limitations on aid sent to Ukraine's military and his ambiguous aims in the conflict.[253][254][25][255]
In December 2024, President Zelenskyy resisted pressure from the Biden administration tolower the conscription age to 18 to replace Ukraine'sbattlefield losses.[256]
On January 23, 2021, Biden andBritish Prime MinisterBoris Johnson had a phone call.[107][257] With the U.K. assuming control over its trade policy after the completion ofBrexit and the withdrawal from theEuropean Economic Area, Johnson pushed Biden for a newtrade deal that would unite a global response to theCOVID-19 pandemic. The Biden administration signaled that it is unlikely to push for a U.K.-U.S.free trade agreement (a major priority for Johnson) early on in Biden's term, as Biden has expressed a desire for the U.S. to make "major investments in American workers and our infrastructure" before entering into new free trade agreements.[258]
On June 13, 2021, President and Mrs. Biden met withQueen Elizabeth II atWindsor Castle while on their visit to the U.K. for theG7 Summit. The visit included a Guard of Honour and afternoon tea with the Queen.[259] After the meeting, Biden said that the Queen was "very generous" and he told reporters that "she reminded me of mymother".[260] Biden also revealed that during their meeting, the Queen asked aboutVladimir Putin andXi Jinping.[261]
On July 10, 2023, President Biden visited the UK, holding meetings with Prime MinisterRishi Sunak andKing Charles III. Discussions centered around climate change and strengthening NATO, while controversy arose over the US decision to supply cluster munitions to Ukraine, which are banned in many NATO countries.[262]
On June 10, 2021, Biden and then-British Prime Minister Boris Johnson issued theNew Atlantic Charter while inCornwall, England.[263] The Charter has been described as a "revitalized" version of the originalAtlantic Charter which was signed by PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt and Prime MinisterWinston Churchill eighty years prior.[264] A statement issued by the White House described theNew Atlantic Charter as aimed to meet the "new challenges of the 21st century," while also "building on the commitments and aspirations set out eighty years ago."[264]
Biden has routinely iterated his commitment to maintaining peace inNorthern Ireland by resisting the possibility of a hard border as a result ofBrexit. When asked byThe Irish Times in March 2021 about comments made by Irish foreign ministerSimon Coveney that the U.K. "cannot be trusted" on theNorthern Ireland Protocol, White House press secretaryJen Psaki stated that "President Biden has been unequivocal about his support for theGood Friday Agreement". As part of his own Irish-American heritage, Psaki stated that Biden "has a special place in his heart for the Irish" underpinning his commitment to Northern Ireland's peace.[265]
On April 11, 2023, Biden visitedBelfast where he gave a speech to students at the newUlster University campus there, and met with the new Prime MinisterRishi Sunak to discuss continuing the Good Friday Agreement on its 25th anniversary, and improving U.K.–U.S. economic relations.[137][266]
Despite previously advocating a policy of engagement with China,[267] on taking office, Biden largely continued theChina policies of his predecessor Donald Trump.[268]: 148 He has criticizedChina's government for being "deeply authoritarian",[269] stealing "over 1 million"manufacturing jobs fromAmericans,[270] breakinginternational trade regulations,[271] unfairly subsidizing Chinesecorporations, and stealing intellectual property from U.S. firms and discriminating against them.[271]Tariffs imposed by Trump on the PRC remained in place,[272] andTreasury SecretaryJanet Yellen said the administration would use the United States' "full array of tools" against "abusive" Chinese practices.[273]
On the day ofBiden’s inauguration, China announced sanctions againstMike Pompeo and 27 other former officials who worked under the Trump presidency. AnNSC spokesperson called the sanctions "unproductive and cynical".[274] This followed Pompeo’s declaration, asSecretary of State under Donald Trump, that China was committinggenocide against the Uyghurs. The Biden campaign had endorsed this position in August 2020,[275] and Blinken had reaffirmed this during his nomination hearing.[276]
Shortly after his inauguration, Biden said that the U.S. needed to "get tough" on China and build "a united front of U.S. allies and partners to confront China's abusive behaviors and human rights violations."[277] Biden had previously said that he had spent more time in private meetings withChinese Communist PartyleaderXi Jinping than any other world leader.[278] He has criticized Xi as "a guy who doesn't have a democratic bone in his body. This is a guy who is a thug."[279][267]
Biden nominatedAntony Blinken as Secretary of State; he took office on January 26, 2021.[280][281] During his nomination hearing, Blinken characterized China as a "techno-autocracy" seeking world dominance,[282] and said that previous optimistic approaches to China were flawed.[283] He stated that Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump, had been correct to adopt a firmer stance toward China,[284] although he strongly disagreed with how Trump handled several aspects of it.[281][285] He also indicated support for welcoming political refugees fromHong Kong. Furthermore, he stated that the Biden administration'scommitment to Taiwan's defense would "absolutely endure", and that an attack from China onTaiwan "would be a grievous mistake on their part".[285] Therepresentative of Taiwan in the United StatesHsiao Bi-khim (the country'sde facto ambassador) was invited to attendBiden's presidential inauguration, becoming the first Taiwanese representative to attend a U.S. presidential ceremony.[286][287] Taiwan is one of the main flashpoints in U.S.-China conflicts.[288]
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Thefirst high-level talks between the Biden administration and China were held inAnchorage, Alaska on March 19, 2021. Participants included secretary of stateAntony Blinken and national security advisorJake Sullivan from the U.S. side, and theChinese Communist Party Politburo member and highest-ranking diplomatYang Jiechi and foreign ministerWang Yi from the Chinese side. The public meeting was contentious, with Blinken and Sullivan raising questions onChina's human rights records,cyberattacks, its threats againstTaiwan, its crackdown inXinjiang andHong Kong, and other issues of U.S. interest. The Chinese side responded that the United States has no standing to lecture it, is no model for others, and that China’s rise cannot be stopped.[289][290] Yang further accused the U.S. of "inciting other countries to attack China" to which Sullivan responded by saying Washington would always support its allies.[291][292] In the week ahead of the talks, the administration met with U.S. allies in Asia and imposed sanctions on senior Chinese officials.[289]
The Washington Post reported that the Biden administration got "a taste of China's'wolf warrior' diplomacy" during the first meeting with its Chinese counterpart, which was "remarkably undiplomatic", adding "China's diplomats appeared more forceful than they had been in any public meeting during President Trump's term."[293]The Atlantic published an article saying that the Biden team "flushed Beijing's true intentions out into the open for the world to see", quoting a senior administration official's comment that it is "increasingly difficult to argue that we don't know what China wants."[294]
In April 2021, it was reported that the Biden administration was rallying U.S. allies in consideration of a boycott of the2022 Winter Olympics inBeijing. The U.S. Department of State denied the report, asserting that "Our position on the 2022 Olympics has not changed. We have not discussed and are not discussing any joint boycott with allies and partners".[295]
At their annual meeting on June 13, 2021, leaders from theGroup of Seven (G7) democracies sharply criticized China for a series of abuses. The G7 nations—the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Japan—had been hesitant about acting separately. Pressured by Biden, they unanimously agreed on a sharp criticism, followed the next day by a similar, strong unanimous attack byNATO members. The criticisms focused on the mistreatment of the Muslim Uyghur minority, the systematic destruction of democracy in Hong Kong, repeated military threats against Taiwan, unfair trade practices, and lack of transparency regarding the origins of COVID-19. China has rejected all criticism of what it considers to be strictly internal policy matters. On the other hand, the constellation of critics is essential to the Chinese economy in terms of jobs, investments and purchases of its huge quantity of exports.[clarification needed][296][297][298][299]
Biden held his second telephone call withChinese leaderXi Jinping on September 9, 2021. On September 21, 2021, Biden urged the U.N. General Assembly to consider "relentless diplomacy" in amidst rising tensions between the U.S. and China. Without mentioning China by name, he said the U.S. is "not seeking anew Cold War or a world divided into rigid blocs."[300][301]Meng Wanzhou returned to China on September 24.[302]
Biden held his first virtual meeting withChinese Communist Party leaderXi Jinping on November 15, 2021.[303]
In December 2021, a coalition of Jewish organizations, including theAmerican Jewish Committee and theRabbinical Assembly, issued an open letter to Biden urging additional action in response to what they describe as an Uyghur genocide.[304][305]
In late June 2023, Blinken traveled to China and met with Xi; subsequent public statements by both countries were largely positive, with Xi and Blinken emphasizing that both sides have a responsibility to manage relations.[306] Shortly, following Blinken's visit, President Joe Biden's reference[307] to Chinese leader Xi Jinping as a “dictator” at an event for his2024 reelection campaign, drew condemnation from China, which issued adémarche to U.S. Ambassador Nicholas Burns’ office.[308]
In April 2024, Biden and Xi held a call wherein they stressed the importance of peace and continued cooperation on the 2023 Woodside agreements. Biden warned Xi against interfering in the U.S. elections later this year, and remained committed to free and open navigation of the Taiwan Straits and protection of American interests in high technology.[309][310][311][312][313]
Biden described China as the "most serious competitor" that posed challenges on the "prosperity, security, and democratic values" of the U.S.[314]
In late February 2021, Biden ordered the government to undertake a 100-daysupply chain review, examining sourcing vulnerabilities for key components (such assemiconductors,rare earth minerals, and certainbatteries) used in important goods (such as computers, electric vehicles, pharmaceuticals,personal protective equipment, and military equipment), including vulnerabilities from "strategic competitor nations." Biden stated that the review would assess how to avoid having the U.S. "rely on a foreign country, especially one that doesn't share our interests or our values, in order to protect and provide for our people during a national emergency." The review was part of a broader competition between the U.S. and China for global economic influence.[315][316]
In May 2021, the administration removed Chinese mobile manufacturerXiaomi from the Chinese military blacklist, reversing the previous administration's decision.[317]
On June 3, 2021, Biden announced anexecutive order that would come into effect from August 2, and ban Americans from investing into 59 Chinese firms, including Huawei. Before it was announced, China said it would retaliate against it.[318]
Western commentators on U.S.–China relations, along with United States Trade RepresentativeKatherine Tai, have noted thatindustrial policy measures signed by Biden in the summer of 2022, such as theCHIPS and Science Act andInflation Reduction Act, were influenced in part by desire to protect American interests in case of Chinese attacks on Taiwan, and to promote economic competition with China.[319][18][17]
The U.S. took steps torestrict TikTok over national-security concerns related to its Chinese ownership. In December 2022, Biden signed theNo TikTok on Government Devices Act, barringTikTok on federal devices.[320] In April 2024, he signed theProtecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act,[321] which set a deadline for apps owned byforeign adversaries, such as TikTok’s parent companyByteDance, to either be sold to a non-adversary owner or be banned in the United States. TikTok’s U.S. ban was not enforced; service was restored and the enforcement deadline was repeatedly extended.[322]
Somegeoeconomics experts see an acceleration of the US–China rivalry as "inevitable" given the tensions manifested openly in the last months of 2022 and early 2023. In a series of interviews withBBC News andAsharq News, Nicolas Firzli, director of theEU ASEAN Centre, argued that "Cold War 2 with China [was] part of the Biden Doctrine, and the only remaining point of convergence between Biden and aRepublican–dominated Congress [...] January 2023 is the moment when things crystalized irreversibly".[323]
In an April 2023 speech delivered atJohns Hopkins SAIS, Treasury SecretaryJanet Yellen said of US-China economic relations: "The United States will assert ourselves when our vital interests are at stake. But we do not seek to 'decouple' our economy from China's. A full separation of our economies would be disastrous for both countries. It would be destabilizing for the rest of the world. Rather, we know that the health of the Chinese and U.S. economies is closely linked. A growing China that plays by the rules can be beneficial for the United States. For instance, it can mean rising demand for U.S. products and services and more dynamic U.S. industries."[324]
In a December 2023 speech delivered at theUS-China Business Council marking its 50th anniversary,Yellen reiterated: "I and other U.S. officials have repeatedly stated that the United States does not seek to decouple from China. This would be damaging to both our economies and would have negative global repercussions."[325]
In May 2024, President Biden directed a series oftariff increases on Chinese imports to counteract "unfair trade practices", effective over the next few years. Starting in 2024, tariffs on steel and aluminum will rise from 0–7.5% to 25%. Similarly, tariffs on ship-to-shore cranes andlithium-ion EV batteries will increase to 25%, and forsolar cells, the rate will jump to 50%. The tariff onelectric vehicles will see a significant rise to 100%. By 2025,semiconductor tariffs will escalate from 25% to 50%. Additional increases will occur in 2026, including tariffs onnon-EV lithium-ion batteries and critical minerals likenatural graphite andpermanent magnets, all set to rise to 25%. Furthermore, medical products such as syringes and needles will see an increase to 50%, and rubber medical gloves will rise to 25% by 2026, alongside other personal protective equipment increasing to 25% in 2024. These adjustments are aimed at protecting American industries from China's competitive economic practices.[326]
The Biden administration took a tough stance on China, with Blinken and Director of National IntelligenceAvril Haines advocating an assertive U.S. approach.[287] The Biden administration rejectedChina's territorial and maritime claims in the South China Sea that violate international law and pledged to back Southeast Asian nations on territorial disputes.[327][328] The administration also condemned Chinese incursions intoTaiwan's air defense zone.[287] In February 2021, the administration called upon the Chinese government and the World Health Organization to release data about the origin of COVID-19; China had refused to grant WHO investigators access to the raw data on early cases of the virus.[329] The British government backed Biden's call for transparency.[329]
During his first visit to the Pentagon on February 9, 2021, Biden urged for the United States Department of Defense to "review" its national security policy concerning China.[330] Biden held his first telephone call withChinese leaderXi Jinping on February 10, 2021; during the call, Biden raised issues of "Beijing's coercive and unfair economic practices" as well as the government's "crackdown in Hong Kong, human rights abuses in Xinjiang, and increasingly assertive actions in the region, including toward Taiwan"; the conversation also involved the COVID-19 pandemic and "shared challenges of global health security, climate change and preventing weapons proliferation."[331][332]
Taiwan's peace and stability was mentioned in the leader level joint statement afterJapanese Prime Minister Suga visited President Biden in April 2021.[333]
On October 20, 2021, Biden expressed concern aboutChinese hypersonic missiles, days after China tested anuclear-capable hypersonic missile that circled the globe before speeding towards its target.[334]
The next day, Biden said the U.S. would defendTaiwan if China attacked, though the White House said later there was no change in policy towards the island.[335] In May 2022, the State Department updated its Taiwan fact sheet to reinstate a line saying “we do not support Taiwan independence.”[336] A year later, on September 18, 2022, Biden said that U.S. forces would defend Taiwan if China launched an invasion. China condemned the remark, saying it sent the wrong signal to supporters of Taiwanese independence.[337]
In early February 2023, U.S. officials tracked aChina-operated high-altitude balloon over North Americanairspace,[338] and Biden ordered it shot down off the coast of South Carolina on February 4 by anF-22 Raptor.[339] China acknowledged ownership but claimed it was a weather device blown off course,[340] while criticizing the U.S. for using force and violating international law.[341][13][14] The incident heightened tensions and led Secretary Blinken to postpone a planned visit to Beijing,[342] though Biden said he did not expect long-term damage to relations.[343]
In November 2023, Biden and Xi met at theFiloli estate inWoodside, California. They agreed to restart cooperation on narcotics crackdowns, a military-to-militaryhotline, risk and safety management ofAI, and increase commercial flights and student exchanges between the two countries, while Biden pledged not to change the U.S. stance ofOne China, or his concerns over improvingChina–Russia relations, or his shift towardeconomic nationalism amid a wave of tech export controls.[344][345][346]
On February 22, 2024, the U.S. State Department approved $75 million in weapons sale to Taiwan, the 13th such approval under the Biden administration. The announcement was made shortly prior to the arrival of a bipartisanU.S. House Select Committee on China delegation led byMike Gallagher in Taiwan.[347]
On December 17, 2023, the U.S. State Department again called forJimmy Lai's release shortly before his trial was set to begin.[348] SpokespersonMatthew Miller said: "We urge Beijing and Hong Kong authorities to respect press freedom in Hong Kong. Actions that stifle press freedom and restrict the free flow of information – as well as Beijing and local authorities’ changes to Hong Kong's electoral system that reduce direct voting and preclude independent and pro-democracy party candidates from participating – have undermined Hong Kong's democratic institutions and harmed Hong Kong's reputation as an international business and financial hub."[349]
On March 29, 2024, the U.S. Secretary of StateAntony Blinken stated upon issuing the annualHong Kong Policy Act report: "This year, I have again certified that Hong Kong does not warrant treatment under U.S. laws in the same manner as the laws were applied to Hong Kong before July 1, 1997. This year’s report catalogs the intensifying repression and ongoing crackdown by PRC and Hong Kong authorities on civil society, media, and dissenting voices, including through the issuance of bounties and arrest warrants for more than a dozen pro-democracy activists living outside Hong Kong. In response, the Department of State is announcing that it is taking steps to impose new visa restrictions on multiple Hong Kong officials responsible for the intensifying crackdown on rights and freedoms, pursuant to Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act."[350]
In September 2024, theCommittee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party published a joint report with theHouse Committee on Education and the Workforce titled "CCP on the Quad: How American Taxpayers and Universities Fund the CCP's Advanced Military and Technological Research." The report documented how over 8,800 research publications funded by the Department of Defense (DoD) and U.S. intelligence agencies involved collaboration with researchers affiliated with the People’s Republic of China (PRC), including institutions linked to China’s defense apparatus. The investigation uncovered significant research ties involving artificial intelligence, hypersonic weapons, nuclear physics, and electromagnetic systems—technologies with direct military application. The report drew on findings from LJ Eads, a former Air Force intelligence officer and founder of Data Abyss, and Jeff Stoff, founder of the Center for Research Security & Integrity, who provided critical analysis. Their contributions highlighted hundreds of cases where NASA-funded research violated the Wolf Amendment by enabling bilateral collaboration with PRC institutions, including China's Seven Sons of National Defense and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Specific cases included research with China's Ocean University—affiliated with the PLA Navy Submarine Academy—on Arctic surveillance-related remote sensing, and a study on sea surface temperatures co-authored with the China Academy of Space Technology. The report called for strengthened research guardrails, enforcement of foreign gift reporting laws, and passage of the DETERRENT Act to safeguard U.S. research from adversarial exploitation.[351]
In their first telephone call on January 27, 2021, Biden andJapanese Prime MinisterYoshihide Suga reaffirmed the U.S.'s commitment to the U.S.-Japan security alliance,[327] including the "unwavering" American commitment to defending Japan under theU.S.-Japan Mutual Defense Treaty, including defense of theSenkaku Islands (which are administered by Japan, butclaimed by China).[328][352] Suga was the first foreign leader to meet with Biden in person when he visited Washington, D.C. on April 16, 2021.[353]
Amid tensions with China and North Korea, The Biden administration strengthenedtrilateral relations with Japan and South Korea, highlighted by the August 2023Camp David summit with Biden, Japanese prime ministerFumio Kishida, and South Korean presidentYoon Suk-yeol. The meeting produced theCamp David Principles relating to joint military exercises, preventingsupply chain disruptions, and united criticism of North Korea, Russia, and China.[354][355][356][357][358]
The first Indo-Pacific Dialogue, building upon commitments made during the August 2023 Camp David summit, was held in Washington D.C. on January 5, 2024.[358] In a joint statement released by the US State Department, which described the dialogue mechanism (that will be hosted annually) as a new chapter in the trilateral relationship, Japan (represented by foreign ministry foreign policy bureau director-general Kobe Yasuhiro), Korea (represented by deputy minister for political affairs Chung Byung-won), and the US (represented by Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific AffairsDaniel J. Kritenbrink) focused on discussing collaborating with Southeast Asian and Pacific Island countries and emphasized the need for regional economic security enhancement.[358]
On July 28, 2024, the US began relocating a detachment of approximately 100 logistics support Marines from the III Marine Expeditionary Force from Okinawa to Guam. This move marked the first phase of the relocation process agreed with Japan in a 2012 to transfer US Marines to locations outside of Japan.[359] The US military presence on Okinawa has long been a source of controversy, with local residents complaining about the noise and misconduct from US troops.[360]
An early Biden administration effort to open a line of communication with North Korea was rebuffed.[361] Following the launch of two missiles by North Korea in March 2021, the Biden administration questioned if they should impose sanctions or return to thesummit-style diplomacy of the Trump administration.[362]
In their first telephone call on February 3, 2021, Biden andSouth Korean PresidentMoon Jae-in agreed to enhance regional cooperation between Japan, the U.S., and South Korea on key issues, including issues onNorth Korea and China, and on the importance of improving strainedJapan–South Korea relations.[363] In March 2021, the U.S. and South Korea reached a military cost-sharing agreement, with South Korea increasing its annual payments to the U.S. by $1 billion (or about 13%). The U.S.-South Korea agreement resolved a deadlock inherited from the Trump administration. The U.S. also announcedU.S.-South Korean joint military exercises (which Trump had scaled back and questioned the need for).[364] The Biden administration affirmed the U.S.'s "unshakable" security commitment to South Korea under theMutual Defense Treaty, to the readiness ofU.S. forces in Korea, and to "reinvigorating and modernizing our democratic alliances around the world."[364] Moon was the second foreign leader to meet with Biden in person when he visited Washington, D.C. on May 21, 2021.[365]
After Biden signed theInflation Reduction Act, South Korean public finance and trade officials complained that itsgreen industrial policy package, which encourages U.S. manufacturing ofrenewable energy andelectric vehicles, threatens the U.S.–South Korean partnership on climate action and countering China's influence, sparking fears of atrade war.[116][366][113][114][115]
On November 13, 2023, during a meeting between President Biden and Indonesian PresidentJoko Widodo, the two countries announced a new comprehensive strategic partnership. However, Indonesia continues to maintain a policy of neutrality between the United States and China.[367]
Biden condemned the2021 coup d'état in Myanmar and called upon themilitary to releaseState CounsellorAung San Suu Kyi and the other officials whom they had detained. He stated that the "United States opposes any attempt to alter the outcome ofrecent elections or impedeMyanmar's democratic transition."[368] Biden called upon the military to "relinquish power it seized and demonstrate respect for the will of the people of Burma" and imposed new U.S. sanctions against the military coup plotters (some of whom were already under sanctions foratrocities against the Rohingya minority), including freezing $1 billion in assets.[369]
In February 2021, State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi was overthrown in amilitary coup led by Min Aung Hlaing. The United States condemned the coup and threatened to impose sanctions.[370] They later followed through on the threat on February 10, when PresidentJoe Biden announced sanctions on Myanmar military leaders and their business associates.[371]
In August 2021, as the protests escalated into greater conflict, two Myanmar citizens in the United States were arrested over an alleged plot to hire hitmen toassassinateKyaw Moe Tun, Myanmar's representative to theUnited Nations in New York. Kyaw Moe Tun had defied the military coup publicly at the UN earlier in 2021 continuing to represent the ousted government.[372]
On March 21, 2022, the United States formally recognized theRohingya genocide in a decision announced byAntony Blinken.[373]
On July 23, 2022, theState Administration Council junta of Myanmar executed four political prisoners, marking the first time the death penalty had been carried out in Myanmar since the late 1980s.[374] TheG7 nations, including the United States, issued a joint statement condemning the executions for its disregard of human rights and the rule of law.[375] The State Department further pressedChina to influence the situation stating that "it cannot be business as usual with the junta."[376]
In November 2022, the United States and the European Union announced further sanctions on individuals and companies connected with atrocities in Myanmar's war targeting military junta officials, arms dealers and their associated companies.[377] One arms company targeted was Sky Aviator Company and its owner Kyaw Min Oo, who the State department assessed as a key supplier of military aircraft parts to the junta's lethal air strikes against civilians and political opposition.[378]
In December 2022, The BURMA Act was passed in Congress authorising sanctions on individuals involved in the coup d'état, providing support to civil society and humanitarian assistance as well as creating a position within the State Department dedicated to democracy in Burma.[379][380]
On October 26, 2023, at theState Administration Council meeting, General Min Aung Hlaing blamed the US for its containment policy against China and provoking unrest in Myanmar.[381]
On October 31, 2023, theU.S. Department of the Treasury'sOffice of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on Myanmar's state-ownedMyanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE), responsible for oil and gas extraction, production, and distribution, and generating significant revenue for the military regime. The sanction also targeted the regime's five top officials: Charlie Than, Kan Zaw, Swe Swe Aung, Zaw Min, and General Maung Maung Aye.[382]
According to a report byReuters, in 2021 the Biden administration participated in a U.S. military-runpropaganda campaign to spread disinformation about theSinovac Chinese COVID-19 vaccine, which had begun in 2020 during the Trump administration.[383] The campaign was described as "payback" forCOVID-19 disinformation by China directed against the U.S.[384] Primarily targeting people in thePhilippines, the campaign used fake social media accounts to spread disinformation, including that the Sinovac vaccine contained pork-derived ingredients and was thereforeharam underIslamic law.[383]
On the sidelines of the September 2022United Nations General Assembly meeting, Filipino PresidentBongbong Marcos met with Biden and gave assurances that the Philippines would remain "partner, ally, friend" to the U.S. Biden acknowledged that the U.S.-Philippine relationship faced "rocky times", but assured Marcos that the U.S. wishes to keep strengthening it. The two leaders discussed increased cooperation on renewable energy, the South China Sea, relations with Taiwan, the Russia-Ukraine war, energy and food prices, and human rights.[385]
In response to increased military threats from China, the Biden administration's efforts in early 2023, led by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, resulted in Marcos' administration opening up access to four Philippine military bases (on top of the current five) for the U.S. military, under theEnhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, and considering negotiating with the U.S. and key ally Japan on a common defense pact.[386][387]
Biden has been a proponent of his "counterterrorism plus" strategy in theMiddle East.[388] Biden told the Council on Foreign Relations that his foreign policy will destroyal-Qaeda andIslamic State, ensuring their remnants will not reconstitute themselves.[271][269]
On the day Biden took office, the new administration adopted tighter controls ondrone strikes and special forces raids in places where there are few U.S. troops, includingLibya andYemen.[389][390] The policy halted the Trump-era policy that gave U.S. military officials more discretion to launchcounterterrorism attacks without White House oversight.[389][390] The temporary measure was put in place while the Biden administration completes an interagency review into the drone policy.[389][390] The review focuses on whether to restore a 2016 order issued by Obama (revoked in 2019 by Trump) that would require the government to issue an annual report disclosing estimates of the numbers of suspected terrorists and civilian casualties, and whether to return to the Obama-era centralized oversight system (in which proposed drone strikes could be approved only if the suspect presented a "continuing and imminent threat" to Americans, and were subject to high-level intelligence vetting in an effort to minimize civilian casualties and blowback) or to keep elements of the Trump-era approach (which was looser and delegated more power to the military and CIA to determine whether to carry out a strike).[389][390]
On April 24, 2021, onArmenian Genocide Remembrance Day, Biden made a statement recognizing theArmenian genocide as agenocide after he indicated support for the congressionalrecognition of the Armenian Genocide.[391][392] The move angered Turkey,[393][394] whichdoes not recognize theWorld War I-era systematic slaughter ofArmenians by theOttoman Empire as genocide andseeks to persuade other nations to do the same.[395][396][397]
As designate, Secretary of State Blinken reaffirmed his support for keepingNATO's door open forGeorgia.[398]
On November 18, 2021, the U.S. State Department praised the independent medical team that criticized the prison hospital conditions thatMikheil Saakashvili was placed in, and urged the Georgian government to treat Saakashvili "fairly and with dignity" and guarantee hisright to a fair trial.[399][400]
On 10 June 2024, US and Armenian diplomats met in Yerevan and pledged to increase bilateral ties. "The sides positively assessed cooperation to support Armenia's ongoing reforms and democratic progress and noted Armenia's aspirations for closer cooperation with Euro-Atlantic institutions andthe West," a joint statement said. The two sides announced that they would deepen ties in the coming year, which will be formalized by signing a deal to upgrade the status of bilateral dialogue to a "Strategic Partnership Commission". This comes as trade turnover between Washington and Yerevan has quadrupled since 2020. Military officials also vowed to establish formal bilateral defense consultations to "regularize planning of defense cooperation objectives."[401]
Iran–United States relations during the Biden administration (2021–2025) were shaped by efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear agreement alongside ongoing regional tensions, sanctions, cyberattacks, and proxy conflicts. Early inJoe Biden’s presidency, U.S. officials expressed interest in returning to theJoint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA),[402] but negotiations in Vienna eventually stalled.[403][404]Iran increased uranium enrichment and imposed retaliatory sanctions,[403][405] while the U.S. imposed new sanctions over missile programs, oil exports, and human rights abuses.[406][407][408]
Tensions persisted throughout this era, marked by recurring proxy attacks on U.S. bases,[409] which intensified following the outbreak of the Gaza war in late 2023,[410] and by subsequent American retaliatory strikes.[411] The period also saw disputes over theassassination of Qasem Soleimani,[412][413][414] and military escalations across the Gulf region.[415][416][417] In 2023, a breakthrough occurred with a U.S.–Iran prisoner swap and the release of frozen Iranian funds,[418][419][420] though indirect diplomacy remained fragile.[421] Iran was later accused of interfering in the 2024 U.S. presidential election through cyber operations and AI disinformation.[422][423][424] Alleged assassination plots targeting Donald Trump and dissidents on U.S. soil further strained relations.[425] By late 2024, relations remained adversarial, marked by unresolved security disputes and growing mistrust..jpg)
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President Biden has been a firm supporter ofIsrael-United States relations, describing himself aZionist and stating thatU.S. aid toIsrael is an investment.[426] Biden's UN Ambassador-designateLinda Thomas-Greenfield vowed to "stand against the unfair singling out of Israel forBoycott, Divestment, and Sanctions," saying that the movement "verges onantisemitism."[427]
During his Senate confirmation hearing,Secretary of StateAntony Blinken said that the Biden administration would continue to recognizeJerusalem as the capital of Israel and to keep theU.S. embassy in Jerusalem[428][429] which had been relocated fromits previous site in Tel Aviv by theTrump Administration per the 1995Jerusalem Embassy Act, passed by a bipartisan supermajority. Biden called Trump's move, done without conditions, "short-sighted and frivolous" but said during his campaign that he would keep the embassy in Jerusalem and not move it back to Tel Aviv.[430] In February 2021, the U.S. Senate adopted, by a 97–3 vote, an amendment to a budget resolution that affirmed the U.S. intent to keep the embassy in Jerusalem.[431]
Consistent with Biden's statements during the campaign,[269][271][432] upon taking office, the Biden administration returned the U.S. to a "more traditional and evenhanded approach to theIsraeli-Palestinian conflict."[433] Biden's acting U.S. ambassador to the UN reaffirmed that the U.S. supported a negotiatedtwo-state solution "in which Israel lives in peace and security, alongside a viable Palestinian state" and called upon the parties to refrain from taking steps that could inhibit a two-state solution, such as Israelannexing or expandingsettlements in the West Bank, or thePalestinians inciting violence.[433] The administration restored U.S. diplomatic relations with thePalestinian Authority and resumed U.S. aid to the Palestinians, two years after Trump had effectively ended U.S. engagement with the Palestinians.[433]
Biden's first call as president with a Middle Eastern leader was withIsraeli Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu in mid-February 2021; on the call, Biden reaffirmed U.S. support for Israeli security, for the recentnormalization of relations between Israel and a handful of Arab and Muslim nations, and for theIsraeli–Palestinian peace process, and the two leaders discussed cooperation against threats from Iran.[434] On April 7, 2021, the Biden administration announced its intention to restore hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. aid to the Palestinians.[435]
Blinken attended theNegev Summit on 27 March 2022 hosted by foreign ministerYair Lapid of Israel and counterparts from Morocco, UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt. In July 2022, it was announced by the White House that Biden would travel to the Middle East and meet with the leaders ofIsrael, thePalestinian Authority, andSaudi Arabia.
AfterHamas launcheda surprise attack on Israel in October 2023, Biden issued a statement condemning the attacks and saying he was ready to offer "all appropriate means ofsupport to the Government and people of Israel".[436] On October 18, 2023, Biden arrived in Israel and was received at Ben-Gurion airport by Israeli PresidentIsaac Herzog and Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu[437] On October 23, 2023, he rejected calls for a ceasefire in theGaza war, stating "We should have those hostages released and then we can talk".[438] Biden stated he had "no confidence" in thedeath totals reported by the Gaza Health Ministry.[439]
In October 2023, Biden called on Congress to pass $14.3 billion in emergencymilitary aid to Israel.[440] Israel already receives $3.8 billion a year in military aid.[441] The Biden Administration bypassed Congress twice in December 2023 to rush weapons to Israel worth a total of about $250 million.[442]
In February 2024, following an announcement by the Israeli government regarding an increase ofIsraeli settlements within theWest Bank, the Biden administration announced it had reversed a 2019 Trump-era decision that had declined to recognize Israeli settlements as a violation ofinternational law.[443][444]Secretary of StateAntony Blinken reiterated this position stating that the settlements were "inconsistent with international law" and that "[Settlement expansion] only weakens, it doesn’t strengthen, Israel’s security,".[445]
The Biden administration had vetoed 3 UN ceasefires for Gaza on October 18th, December 8th and February 20th.[446] In March 2024, the United States abstained from voting onUN Security Council resolution 2728, a significant departure from its usual practice of vetoing ceasefire resolutions. Resolution 2728, introduced by elected members includingMozambique, called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza during Ramadan and the unconditional release of all hostages, while also demanding humanitarian access for civilians. This abstention followed the veto of a previous U.S. proposal by Russia and China, which was criticized for being ambiguous and lacking international support. The U.S. abstention heightened tensions between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, particularly regarding a planned military operation inRafah, Gaza, leading Netanyahu to cancel a high-level meeting with a White House delegation. Despite criticism for not condemningHamas, the abstention reflected the Biden administration's frustration with Netanyahu and its commitment to negotiating a ceasefire coupled with the release of hostages.[447][448]
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On April 18, 2024, the Biden Administration vetoed a UN resolution forPalestinian statehood.[449] Biden signed a bill to send $26 billion to Israel plus $1 billion in aid for Gaza on April 24.[450]
In May 2024, President Biden blocked a shipment of heavy bombs to Israel, citing concerns about potential civilian casualties in Gaza, particularly inRafah, where many Palestinian refugees had sought shelter. This decision aimed to prevent the use of these bombs in a planned Israeli ground operation, marking a significant departure from previous U.S. support for Israel's military actions. Biden affirmed support for Israel's defense but emphasized withholding weapons for offensive operations that could harm civilians. This move highlighted growing tensions between the Biden administration and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government. While some critics argued that Biden's decision undermined Israel's security, others viewed it as a necessary step to protect civilian lives and address the escalating humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Historically, the U.S. has used military aid as leverage to influence Israeli policies.[451][452] On May 31, Biden announced his support for an Israeliceasefire proposal, saying that Hamas was "no longer capable" of another large-scale attack.[453][454][455] The proposal, which would establish a permanent ceasefire, release all hostages, and reconstruct theGaza Strip, was supported by Hamas officials after mediation byEgypt andQatar.[456][457] The Netanyahu administration responded that Israel's goals regarding "the destruction of Hamas military and governing capabilities" had not changed and that conditions would need to be met before it would agree to a ceasefire.[458][459][460] In the first year of the war, it was estimated that the Biden administration had sent Israel at least $17.9 billion in military aid, a record.[461] In about the same period, it sent Palestinians $1.2 billion in humanitarian aid.[462] In the last week of Biden's presidency, Qatari officials announced that Hamas had accepted the ceasefire deal, with 33 hostages to be released pending Israeli approval. Biden hailed the deal, saying "it is long past time for the fighting to end and the work of building peace and security to begin" in a press release the same day.[463][464]
On July 10, 2024, the Biden administration resumed shipments of the500-pound bombs to Israel, which were halted in May over concerns about thehumanitarian impact of Israel's use of them inkilling Palestinians in Gaza.[465]
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On September 17, 2024, thousands of handheldpagers used byHezbollah simultaneouslyexploded across Lebanon and Syria.[466] The attack came just a day after the Biden administration's special envoyAmos Hochstein visited Israel and warned Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu against provoking a majorescalation in Lebanon.[467]
On September 26, 2024,U.S. RepresentativeRashida Tlaib called onUnited States Secretary of StateAntony Blinken to resign in a social media post, citing the ProPublica story alleging he had rejected internal government findings about Israel blocking aid to Gaza. The internal findings, ProPublica reported, could have implications for U.S. military aid to Israel because of U.S. laws — which require an end to weapons shipments to countries that block U.S.-backed humanitarian aid.[468][469]
During a July 19, 2021 meeting at theWhite House withJordanian KingAbdullah II andCrown PrinceHussein, Biden expressed "strong U.S. support for Jordan," a longtime U.S. partner in the Middle East, pushed for improvingIsrael–Jordan relations, and supported military cooperation between Jordan and the U.S. He and King Abdullah II also discussed Jordan's economic future and the American donation of 500,000COVID-19 vaccines to the Kingdom.[470][471] The Biden Administration has continued to provide military and economic aid to Jordan, whose struggling economy has beendamaged by theCOVID-19 pandemic.[472]
The U.S. called for Russian,Turkish, and UAE forces (and their proxies) to immediately withdraw fromLibya, after those countries ignored the January 23, 2021 deadline for foreign forces and mercenaries to leave the country (as set by aUN-backed ceasefire signed in October 2019 to end thewar among the countries' factions and their foreign supporters).Richard M. Mills Jr., the Acting U.S. Ambassador to the UN, said, "We call on all external parties, to include Russia, Turkey and the UAE, to respect Libyan sovereignty and immediately cease all military intervention in Libya."[473]
The Biden administration pressed the Egyptian government ofAbdel Fattah el-Sisi to improve its poorhuman rights record, but nonetheless approved in February 2021 a $197 million sale ofRolling Airframe Missiles for theEgyptian Navy's coastal defenses, citing the country's role in regional security as amajor non-NATO ally.[474][475]
On January 27, 2021, the day after Antony Blinken took office as Secretary of State, the Biden administration put a temporary freeze on arms sales to Saudi Arabia (specifically, of precision-guided munitions) and theUnited Arab Emirates (specifically, ofF-35 fighter jets) pending a review of billions of dollars' worth of weapons transactions approved by theTrump administration.[476]
In February 2021, shortly after taking office, Biden fulfilled a campaign pledge to end U.S. support for the five-yearSaudi Arabian–led offensive in Yemen. The Saudi offensive caused ahumanitarian crisis in Yemen (the poorest country in theArabian Peninsula) and failed to defeat the Iran-backedHouthis.[477][478] Biden called for the warring parties to adopt acease-fire, open channels to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid, and resume theYemeni peace process.[477] Shortly thereafter, the Biden administration also removed the Houthis from theState Department list of foreign terrorist organizations, a designation that the Trump administration had made in its final days in office. The designation had threatened to halt the delivery of food and humanitarian aid to Yemenis.[479][480] The Biden administration made clear that the U.S. would continue to defend Saudi Arabia against Houthi attacks,[476][477][478] continue U.S. cooperation with the Saudi government on military and counterterrorism issues,[477] and continue U.S. efforts againstal-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula.[477]
Biden chose to deal directly withKing Salman, bypassing the youngCrown PrinceMohammed bin Salman (MBS), thede facto Saudi leader, whose standing in Washington was seriously damaged by theassassination of dissident and journalist Jamal Khashoggi, his jailing of Saudi dissidents, and his role in the Yemeni war.[481][482] The administration announced that it would not deal with MBS in any capacity exceptSaudi defense minister, the position he holds in addition to being crown prince and designated heir.[482] In an attempt to repair the kingdom's image to a deeply skeptical new administration, the Saudi government undertook certain reforms in early 2021 that the U.S. had urged, including releasing imprisoned activistLoujain al-Hathloul and some other political prisoners, beginning judicial reforms, and revisingstate-approved school textbooks to eliminate certain material that promoted Islamic extremism, radicalization, and anti-Semitism.[481] In February 2021, the Biden administration publicly released a report (long withheld by the Trump administration) by theOffice of the Director of National Intelligence, containing U.S. intelligence's assessment that MBS had approved the Saudi operation that led to Khashoggi's brutal murder in October 2018, basing this conclusion on "the Crown Prince's control of decisionmaking in the Kingdom, the direct involvement of a key adviser and members of Muhammad bin Salman's protective detail in the operation, and the Crown Prince's support for using violent measures to silence dissidents abroad, including Khashoggi."[482][483][484]
After the report was released, the administration announced a new "Khashoggi ban" policy,[483][485] allowing the U.S. government to bar visas for persons working for a foreign government that are directly engaged in "serious, extraterritorial counter-dissident activities, including those that suppress, harass, surveil, threaten, or harm journalists, activists, or other persons perceived to be dissidents for their work."[483] The travel ban was imposed against 76 Saudi citizens, includingAhmad Asiri, the ex-Saudi intelligence chief who helped orchestrate the Khashoggi operation,[485] and on theSaudi Royal Guard's Rapid Intervention Force, the MBS bodyguard unit under the crown prince's personal control.[486] Despite pressure from human rights groups and some Democrats to do so, the administration did not impose any direct sanctions on MBS personally, determining that the damage toSaudi–U.S. relations would be too grave.[485][486][487] Administration officials announced that it intended to use the "Khashoggi ban" policy against officials in other countries, such as Russia, China, and Turkey, that have attempted to silence critics living in the U.S., Europe, or other free nations.[486]
Human rights groups have urged the Biden administration to prioritize the restoration of human rights in Bahrain as a key component of the U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East.[488][489]
An administration source cited that they were preparing an overhaul of arms export policy, aimed at gaining balance between American defense contractors and commitment to human rights. The new policy is said to affect arms sales to countries accused of human rights violations. Major arms sales like the $23 billion arms deal with the UAE also remained in limbo following the new shift in the policy, as progressives in the President's party are against the sale due to Emirates' role in theYemeni Civil War.[490][491]
On February 15, 2021, an Iranian-backed militialaunched a missile attack on the airport in Erbil in northern Iraq, killing a Filipino contractor with the U.S.-led military coalition and wounding six others, including five Americans. In retaliation, Biden ordered an airstrike on the Iranian-backedKataib Hezbollah (KH) andKataib Sayyid al-Shuhada (KSS) militias in eastern Syria, just across the border with Iraq (betweenAl Qaem andAbu Kamal). This was the administration's first military action. Pentagon spokespersonJohn Kirby described the American retaliation as aproportionate response meant to punish the perpetrators but not to escalate hostilities with Iran.[492][493] Biden called off a second planned strike at the last minute after military reconnaissance identified civilians in the intended target.[493][494]
On June 27, 2021, the U.S. carried out a round of airstrikes against three operational and arms storage facilities of Iran-backed militias in the Syria-Iraq border region. The Pentagon press secretary stated that the action was in response toUAV attacks by the militias.[495]
On February 3, 2022, ISIS leaderAbu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashikilled himself during acounterterrorism operation by theU.S. Special Forces inAtme in northwest Syria.[496]
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In his confirmation hearings, Blinken stated that "we are very clear eyed" about the challenges posed byTurkey and said that the Turkish government underRecep Tayyip Erdoğan was "not acting like an ally" and would review if sanctions were necessary against Erdoğan's government due to its purchase of RussianS-400 missile systems.[497] Under the previous administration,Turkish–U.S. relations were strained over policy differences regardingSyria, Turkey's oil exploration in the eastern Mediterranean, and Turkey's role in the2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war,[497] as well as Turkey's demands (rejected by the U.S.) for the extradition of dissident Islamic preacherFethullah Gülen.[498]
Biden praised President Erdoğan for "doing a great job" regarding theBlack Sea Grain Initiative and theenlargement of NATO.[499]
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In their first telephone call on February 8, 2021, Biden andIndian Prime MinisterNarendra Modi committed to close cooperation on the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and promoting a "free and open Indo-Pacific region" and agreed that the "rule of law and the democratic process must be upheld" in India's regional neighbor Burma, in which the military seized power in a coup.[500][501][502] Addressing regional security issues posed by China, Biden and Modi expressed "support for freedom of navigation, territorial integrity, and a stronger regional architecture throughthe Quad" (the U.S., India, Japan, and Australia).[501] Biden made no direct mention of the ongoingfarmers' protests, but noted that a "shared commitment to democratic values" serves as the bedrock for theIndia–U.S. relationship.[500] Modi stated after the call that both he and Biden are "committed to arules-based international order" and "look forward to consolidating our strategic partnership."[502]
Relations with Pakistan had been frosty, withWendy Sherman making it clear that the administration will not currently build further bilateral relations as it has with India.Pakistani Prime MinisterImran Khan was reportedly "angry" for not having received a phone call from Biden yet, as of October 2021. Pakistan-India relations, and the situation inAfghanistan, played big parts in this - afterTaliban militantstook control of Kabul two months prior, Khan described it as “breaking the chains of slavery”.[503] By the end of the year, Imran Khan was reportedly the "only major world leader" with whom Biden had not spoken with on the phone.[504]
When Khan was facing ano-confidence motion in parliament, he blamed the United States for seeking to oust him, calling it part of an "international conspiracy". The United States denied these claims.[505] Khan lost the no-confidence vote on April 9, 2022[506] andShehbaz Sharif took his place as Prime Minister of Pakistan.[507] In August 2023, according to aleaked diplomatic cable at the March 7, 2022 meeting from Pakistan received byThe Intercept, the US State department encouraged removal of Imran Khan owing to his neutral stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[508]
After Biden took office, his administration began a broad review of the U.S.'s policy in Afghanistan,[509][510] where 2,500 U.S. troops were stationed at the beginning of Biden's term.[510]
In early February 2021, shortly after Biden took office, the bipartisan Afghanistan Study Group, a panel established by Congress in 2019, issued its report, recommended that the administration slow the furtherwithdrawal of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, keeping U.S. troops after a May 1 deadline set by the February 2020 U.S.-TalibanDoha agreement reached under the Trump administration.[509][510] The Study Group, led by former generalJoseph Dunford and former U.S. SenatorKelly Ayotte, warned against a complete U.S. military withdrawal because the Taliban had not fully complied with their obligations under the agreement and because the panel viewed a quick withdrawal of remaining U.S. forces as a risk factor for renewed Afghan civil war, terrorist threats, andinsurgency; the panel recommended that U.S. forces be further reduced as security conditions in the country improve.[509][510]
Biden's Secretary of StateAntony Blinken discussed the U.S. policy review with Afghan PresidentAshraf Ghani in February 2021, saying that the U.S. was committed to "a just and durable political settlement and permanent and comprehensive ceasefire" and would continue to consult "with Afghan leaders, NATO allies and international partners" on the future of the February 2020 deal.[511] Later that month, in an unusually blunt letter from Blinken to Ghani, the U.S. expressed frustration with the stalled Afghan negotiations, in which Ghani was frequently intransigent and resisted the formation of an interim Afghan government that would advance the peace process but also probably end his presidency.[512] The U.S. proposed a UN-led peace conference, and urged Ghani to participate "to move matters more fundamentally and quickly toward a settlement and a permanent and comprehensive cease-fire."[512]
On April 13, 2021, the White House announced that the remaining 2,500 troops in Afghanistan would withdraw by September 11, 2021. The U.S. government commented that it would continue to support the Afghan government in regards of a possible Taliban military victory. The deadline was extended from that of May 1, 2021 previously announced by theTrump administration.[513]
By early July 2021, most of the American troops inAfghanistan were withdrawn.[514] Biden addressed the withdrawal, stating that: "The likelihood there's going to be the Taliban overrunning everything and owning the whole country is highly unlikely."[514] However, on August 15, amidan offensive by the Taliban, the Afghan government collapsed and Afghan PresidentAshraf Ghani fled the country, leaving the Taliban in full control of Afghanistan.[514][515]
During the initialsiege of Kabul and the subsequent collapse of the Afghan government, Biden was vacationing atCamp David.[516] Facing mounting criticism for the administration's handling of the event, Biden returned to the White House on August 16 where he delivered an address to the American people defending his decision to withdraw U.S. forces from the country. In his remarks, Biden blamed theAfghan National Army for failing to adequately defend against the Taliban saying, "American troops cannot and should not be fighting in a war and dying in a war that Afghan forces are not willing to fight for themselves."[517][518][519]
The events in Afghanistan were one of the causes forBiden's approval rating declining in July and August 2021.
Many commentators have drawn comparisons between the withdraw and evacuation of U.S. forces in Afghanistan with thefall of Saigon at the end of theVietnam War.[520][521]
On July 31, 2022,al-Qaeda leaderAyman al-Zawahiri was killed in Kabul byan American drone strike approved by Biden.[522]
On September 24, 2024, theHouse Foreign Affairs Committee voted to recommendU.S. Secretary of StateAntony Blinken be held incontempt of Congress for failing to comply with a subpoena seeking information about the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.[523]
On September 25, 2024, theUnited States House of Representatives passed a resolution condemning the Biden-Harris Administration for the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The resolution passed 219 - 194, with ten Democrats and all Republicans voting in favor.[524]
Since June 2021, the United States has shared 114,570,820 safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine doses with the people of Bangladesh – free of cost. Bangladesh is the largest recipient of U.S. COVID-19 vaccine donations with over 150 million dosages. Since the beginning of the pandemic, U.S. support has trained more than 50,000 healthcare providers and other workers on safely administering vaccines across 64 districts, donated 18 freezer vans, 750 freezer units, and 8,000 vaccine carriers to help transport 71 million doses of vaccines to remote areas and directly administered 84 million vaccinations.[525][526]
After theBiden administration imposed visa sanctions on Bangladeshi officials for human rights and other reasons, it was severely criticized by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.[527]
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In March 2021, Biden held a virtual meeting with leaders ofJapan,India andAustralia, an alliance of countries known as theQuadrilateral Security Dialogue, or the Quad, that work together to address China's expansionism in theIndo-Pacific region.[528][529] A few days later, the administration officials, including secretary of state Antony Blinken and secretary of defense Lloyd Austin, met with U.S. allies in Asia and imposed sanctions on senior Chinese officials.[530][289] Austin also visited India to deepen the defense ties between the two countries.[529] In September 2021, Biden hosted the first in-person meeting of Quad at the White House.[531]
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On October 27, 2021, President Biden attended a virtual summit withASEAN (East Asia Summit) which was last attended by a U.S. president in 2017. Biden urged "shared vision for a region where every country can compete and succeed on a level playing field."[73] The 9 of 10 attending ASEAN members were Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Myanmar's military government skipped the summit amid controversies with Brunei, current chair of the summit, and Cambodia. Biden's comments on the summit focused on democracy in the region and theinternational rules-based order.[532] TheNational Security Council's East Asia director,Edgard Kagan, clarified the aims ofthe Quad as not intended to be "an Asian NATO" and exists alongside the existing ASEAN. Additionally, the White House planned to fund $102 million towards climate, health, economic and education programs to advance strategic partnership with ASEAN.[73]
In 2022, President Biden announced the elevation of US-ASEAN relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) at the U.S.–ASEAN Summit inPhnom Penh.[533]
In September 2023, Vice PresidentKamala Harris attended the 11th US–ASEAN summit inJakarta. In her prepared remarks, she announced a planned establishment of the first U.S.-ASEAN Center in Washington D.C. through apublic-private partnership, with a mission of further strengthening US-ASEAN ties.[534][535]
On December 14, 2023, theState Department announced the formal opening of the U.S.–ASEAN Center in D.C., launched in partnership withArizona State University.[534] Describing the center as a demonstration of "the next step in the US-ASEAN relationship,"Elizabeth M. Allen noted it will be "an inclusive and accessible space for scholars to dig into important issues and research," "a convening platform for the diplomatic community and U.S. officials as well as think tankers, civil society, and private sector representatives," "a venue for business roundtables that strengthen networks," "a forum for conferences that engages leading minds and diverse young people on the pressing issues," as well as "a unique site for high level dialogues."[534]
On May 23, 2022, Biden launched theIndo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) to counter growing Chinese economic and political influence in the Indo-Pacific region. At the time of its launch, the IPEF had 12 partners including Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.[536] In response, China described the proposed grouping as a "closed and exclusive club". National Security AdviserJake Sullivan defended the IPEF by highlighting the diverse nature of the grouping's membership.[537][538] In November 2023, under pressure from Congressional Democrats, the Biden administration halted plans for the IPEF's trade component.[539][540]
On September 15, 2021, Biden held a meeting aboutAUKUS with British Prime MinisterBoris Johnson and Australian Prime MinisterScott Morrison to announce that the U.S. will share their nuclear submarine technology with Australia as part of a nuclear propulsion and defense partnership with the country and the U.K. It was the first time since 1958, when then-PresidentDwight D. Eisenhower gave the technology toGreat Britain, that America shared nuclear submarine technology with the British.[541] Biden stated that the deal was a way to "address both the current strategic environment in the (Indo-Pacific) region and how it may evolve".[542]
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On 1 June 2022, Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern met with PresidentJoe Biden andVice-PresidentKamala Harris in order to reaffirm the US–New Zealand bilateral relationship. The two heads of government also issued a joint statement reaffirming bilateral cooperation on various international issues including theIndo-Pacific, theSouth China Sea dispute, Chinese tensions with Taiwan, alleged human rights violations in Hong Kong and Xinjiang, and support for Ukraine in response to theRussian invasion of Ukraine. In addition, Ardern and Biden reaffirmed cooperation in the areas ofclimate change mitigation, oceanic governance, managing pollution and pandemics, and combating extremism.[543][544] In response,Chinese Foreign Ministry officialZhao Lijian accused New Zealand and the United States of spreading disinformation about China's diplomatic engagement with Pacific Islands countries and interfering in Chinese internal affairs. He urged Washington to end its allegedCold War mentality towards China and Wellington to adhere to its stated "independent foreign policy."[545][546]
On 9-11 July 2024, Prime MinisterChristopher Luxon attended the2024 NATO summit as an Indo-Pacific ally. During the visit, he met US President Joe Biden along with several Republican and Democratic senators and Congressmen includingBill Hagerty,Michael McCaul,Gregory Meeks andBen Cardin. In addition, Luxon met several international leaders including British Prime MinisterKeir Starmer, Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy, Japanese Prime MinisterFumio Kishida, South Korean PresidentYoon Suk Yeol, and Australian Deputy Prime MinisterRichard Marles. On 11 July, Luxon visitedSan Francisco, where he met Californian GovernorGavin Newsom.[547]
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In May 2023, a defense agreement was announced between the two countries.[548][549][550] ThePNG Prime MinisterJames Marape agreed to release the full details of the agreement but categorically stated that the US would be prohibited from launching an offensive war from the Island. The agreement is seen as a part of the on-going tension between the United States and China over influence in the region.[551] On 22 May, the United States and Papuan governments formally signed two defence and maritime agreements.[552] The agreements permit use ofLombrum Naval Base andMomote Airport.[553] In response, students from several Papuan universities including thePapua New Guinea University of Technology,University of Goroka, andUniversity of Papua New Guinea staged protests to coincide with the signing of the bilateral security treaty, calling for transparency and clarity.[554][555]
In November and December 2023, Papua New Guinea voted against an "immediate humanitarian ceasefire" in the UN General Assembly.[556][557] New Zealand newspaperTe Ao Maori News claimed it "looks as though they’re aligning themselves with Israel and the United States".[556]University of Canterbury professor Steven Ratuva claimed this was because of "the rise of evangelical movements in the region which are linked to the evangelical movements in the United States, which arein support of Trump, in support of Israel andzionism generally". Ratuva also described their economic reliance on the United States as a factor in the decision.[556]
TheUnited States–Pacific Island Country Summit was a meeting hosted byJoe Biden with Pacific Island leaders held on September 28–29, 2022.[558] The Pacific leaders endorsed the declaration of the United States–Pacific partnership that commits the United States and the Pacific Island countries to work together "in the face of a worseningclimate crisis and an increasingly complex geopolitical environment".[559]
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 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(August 2024) |
On January 27, the Department of State demanded thatEritrea withdraw from theTigray War inEthiopia.[560]
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)AdministratorSamantha Power, anappointee of President Biden, is scheduled to meet with Ethiopian officials in early August 2021 with the goal of preventing war-inducedfamine in Tigray. Power has called for "unimpeded humanitarian access to prevent famine...and meet urgent needs." Ethiopia accuses Tigray rebel forces (theTPLF andTDF) of blocking aid access;[561] Tigray forces blame the Ethiopian federal government.[562]
On January 20, 2021, his first day in office, Biden sent a memorandum to theU.S. State Department reinstating Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) toLiberians.[563][564]
Although most U.S. troops were withdrawn from Somalia in early January 2021, an undisclosed number of U.S. troops participated in a training program againstAl-Shabaab jihadists on January 31.[565]
On July 20, 2021, the U.S. Air Force carried out the first airstrike against position of the al-Shabaab group under the Biden administration. The airstrike took place in the city ofGalkayo, Somalia.[566]
USAIDAdministratorSamantha Power arrived inSudan on July 31, 2021, to meet with seniortransition officials. Sudan has been ruled by military and civilian leaders ever since thedeposition of longtime Sudanese leaderOmar al-Bashir in amilitary coup amidpopular protests. Power will meet chairman of the transitional military-civilianSovereignty CouncilGen.Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Prime MinisterAbdalla Hamdok atKhartoum, the Sudanese capital.
Power described Sudan as "an inspiring example to the world that noleader is ever permanentlyimmune from thewill of their people;" she is expected to strengthen U.S. ties with the pro-Western transitional government and leverage USAID's resources to support Sudan's transition to a civilian democracy.[561]
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Consistent with his campaign pledges,[567][568] Biden brought the U.S. back into several multilateral organizations and agreements.[569]
In early February 2021, soon after taking office, the Biden returned the United States to theUnited Nations Human Rights Council (which the Trump administration withdrew from in 2018) and directed the State Department "to re-engage immediately and robustly" with the council; Blinken, Biden's secretary of state, said that "The best way to improve the Council, so it can achieve its potential, is through robust and principled U.S. leadership."[569]
Biden also rescinded theMexico City Policy. The policy, first adopted under Reagan, has been alternately imposed under Republican administrations and rescinded under Democratic ones,[570] and was extended in scope under Trump.[571] Biden's repeal of the rule was welcomed by, among other,Doctors Without Borders[571] andAmnesty International.[572] Biden also withdrew the U.S. from theGeneva Consensus Declaration, an anti-abortion declaration that the U.S. had joined under Trump, and restored funding to theUN Population Fund.[573]
Biden signed anexecutive order on his first day in office, halting the U.S. withdrawal from theWorld Health Organization that Trump had ordered (but which had not yet taken effect). Biden also appointed Dr.Anthony Fauci, the U.S. government's chief infectious disease scientist, as the head of the delegation to the WHO.[574] The U.S. has been the largest financial contributor to the WHO, providing roughly one-fifth of its annual budget.[575] Fauci stated the US would meet its financial obligations of $400–$500 million/year, and rejoin theCOVAX global framework for vaccinating people in low to middle-income countries which had been stalled by lack of funding.[576]
Biden renewed COVID-19-related travel bans barring non-U.S. nationals from several parts of the world, including theSchengen Area,Ireland, theUnited Kingdom, andBrazil, from entering the U.S. These bans had initially been imposed by Trump, but before leaving office Trump had ordered that the bans expire on January 26, 2021. The day before the travel bans were set to expire, Biden extended them and also addedSouth Africa to the list of affected countries.[577] The bans on entry by mainland Chinese and Iranian nationals were not scheduled to expire by Trump and remained in place.[578]
On February 19, 2021, theGroup of Seven met virtually in a call convened by the U.K.'sBoris Johnson. Joe Biden spoke for fifteen minutes and declared "America is Back" with an end to Trump's "America First" Policy. Biden stressed the importance of the rise of China especially in the areas of cybersecurity and technology.[579]
Biden attended the47th G7 Summit in June 2021 alongside the U.K.'s Boris Johnson, Canada'sJustin Trudeau, Japan'sYoshihide Suga, France'sEmmanuel Macron, Germany'sAngela Merkel, Italy'sMario Draghi, and the EU represented byUrsula von der Leyen andCharles Michel.[580] While at the G7 reception on June 11, Biden also met withQueen Elizabeth II before their scheduled meeting atWindsor Castle on June 13.[581] At the G7 Summit talks, the leaders discussed the pandemic, environmental action, and how to challenge the rise of China on the world stage.[582]
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In January 2021, Biden stated that addressing climate change is "an essential element of U.S. foreign policy and national security."[583]
In February 2021, President Biden signed an executive order for the U.S. to rejoin theParis Accords, a 2015 agreement addressing climate change and emissions targets.[584] In November 2021, Biden attendedCOP26 in Glasgow, stating that "we only have a brief window before us to raise our ambitions" to switch to renewable energy sources.[585][586]
In November 2021, the U.S. coordinated with China, India, Japan, the U.K., and South Korea to release oil fromstrategic petroleum reserves to lower prices.[587]
In December 2021, the Biden administration halted federal funding to new fossil fuel projects overseas.[588]
In August 2022, President Biden signed theInflation Reduction Act. Climate action policy analysts such as Anna McGinn at the American think tankEnvironmental and Energy Study Institute hailed thegreen industrial policy act as helping uphold the United States' Paris Agreement commitments, but criticized it as failing to create a cohesive national climate strategy.[12] Jason Bordoff at theInternational Monetary Fund criticized itsprotectionist measures for opening America to potentialtrade war.[11] The measures were acknowledged byUnited States Trade RepresentativeKatherine Tai, the think tankCenter for Strategic International Studies, and political scientist Jiachen Shi as strategic countermeasures to the rise of China.[18][17][319]
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On April 2, 2021, PresidentJoe Biden lifted the Trump-era sanctions against Bensouda andPhakiso Mochochoko, head of the ICC's Jurisdiction, Complementarity and Cooperation Division. Secretary of StateAntony Blinken issued a statement maintaining the country's "longstanding objection to the Court’s efforts to assert jurisdiction over personnel of non-States Parties such as the United States and Israel"; however, he added that "our concerns about these cases would be better addressed through engagement with all stakeholders in the ICC process rather than through the imposition of sanctions".[589][590]
Although not a member, Biden has welcomed the ICC's decision for thearrest warrant of thePresident of RussiaVladimir Putin and the Russian Commissioner for Children's RightsMaria Lvova-Belova on March 18, 2023, during theRussian invasion of Ukraine after it was discovered that Russia haddeported children from Ukraine.[591][592]
When the ICC beganconsidering arrest warrants for Israeli Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu and Defense MinisterYoav Gallant overIsraeli war crimes committed during theGaza war in theGaza Strip, Biden was opposed,[593][594] denouncing the chief investigator's request for arrest warrants as "outrageous", pledging "ironclad" support for Israel.[595][596] Secretary of StateAntony Blinken said the Biden administration would work with the US Congress on potentialsanctions against the ICC.[597] On June 4, 2024, theU.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to sanction the ICC prosecutor; in September, U.N. AmbassadorLinda Thomas-Greenfield stated the U.S. would not comply with any ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu.[596]
After the ICC actuallyissued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Galant in November of that year, the White House said the United States "fundamentally rejects" the ICC's decision, adding that "the ICC does not have jurisdiction over this matter".[598] Biden called the arrest warrant for Netanyahu "outrageous".[599] SenatorLindsey Graham (R-SC) called the ICC a "dangerous joke"[600] and for sanctions on the ICC in a bill already proposed.[601] Similarly, SenatorChuck Schumer (D-NY) said that Congress "needs to pass the bipartisan legislation that came from the House sanctioning the Court for such an outrage and President Biden needs to sign it." RepresentativeMichael Waltz (R-FL) added that "The ICC has no credibility and these allegations have been refuted by the US government." SenatorTom Cotton (R-AR) called for military force, according to the domestic lawThe Hague Invasion Act, to use "all means necessary and appropriate." SenatorJohn Fetterman (D-PA) wrote on social media that the ICC has: "No standing, relevance, or path. Fuck that." His colleagues, RepresentativeJared Moskowitz (D-FL) accused the ICC of having an "antisemitic double standard," SenatorJacky Rosen (D-NV) called on Biden to "use his authority to swiftly respond to this overreach" and RepresentativeRitchie Torres (D-NY) accused the ICC of "criminalizing self-defence."[602]
On the other hand, RepresentativeRashida Tlaib (D-MI) said: "The International Criminal Court’s long overdue decision to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity signals that the days of the Israeli apartheid government operating with impunity are ending."[602] SenatorBernie Sanders (I-VT) expressed his support for the warrants, describing the ICC's charges as well-founded and warning that "If the world does not uphold international law, we will descend into further barbarism."[603]
On January 9, 2025, the U.S. House of Representatives passed theIllegitimate Court Counteraction Act by 243–140 to sanction the ICC in protest at its arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Galant issued in November 2024.[604][605]
DuringJoe Biden's 2020 presidential campaign, he indicated that he would support ano-first-use or sole-purpose nuclear policy whereby the United States would only use nuclear weapons to respond to or deter nuclear attacks; however, the 2022Nuclear Posture Review contained no such provision.[606][607]
Under the Biden administration, there has been a notable shift towardeconomic nationalism, marked by policies aimed at reducing dependence on foreign economies and protecting domestic industries. This approach reflects a broader trend of prioritizing American economic interests, often through measures that limit foreign competition and bolster U.S. manufacturing and technology sectors.
TheCOVID-19 pandemic highlighted vulnerabilities in global supply chains, especially in critical sectors like healthcare, semiconductors, and essential goods. The disruptions caused by the pandemic underscored the need for greater self-sufficiency and resilience in the U.S. economy, prompting policies aimed at reducing reliance on foreign suppliers.[608] There has also been growing public support for economic policies that prioritize American jobs and industries. Many Americans have expressed concerns over the loss of manufacturing jobs to countries like China and the impact ofglobalization on local economies. This sentiment has fueled support for economic nationalism and policies that aim to "bring jobs back" to the U.S.[609]
The Biden administration's economic nationalism builds on trends initiated during the Trump administration, which implemented significant tariffs on Chinese goods and promoted the"America First" agenda. While Biden has diverged from Trump in several areas, the focus on protecting domestic industries and addressing trade imbalances has remained a consistent theme.[610]
The Biden administration largely maintained many of thetariffs imposed by the previous administration, particularly those on Chinese imports. Those tariffs, originally intended to address unfair trade practices and reduce trade deficits, have remained in place as tools for leveraging negotiations and protecting domestic industries.
Since 2022, the Biden administration had sought to limit China’s ability to buy advanced semiconductors, chip-making equipment and other technologies from the United States. The approach, dubbed “small yard, high fence,” was aimed at slowing China’s development of advanced artificial intelligence and hindering its ability to produce semiconductors that are critical for high-tech products.[611]In May 2024, President Biden directed a series of tariff increases on Chinese imports to counteract "unfair trade practices". These tariffs are set to incrementally increase over the next few years, covering a range of goods from steel and aluminum to electric vehicles and semiconductors. For example, tariffs on steel and aluminum will rise to 25%, while those on electric vehicles will reach 100% by 2026.[612]
President Biden's significant investments in manufacturing, energy, and infrastructure represent a concerted effort to reinforce national economic sovereignty and reduce dependency on foreign resources. By injecting nearly $700 billion into domestic manufacturing and clean energy through initiatives like theInfrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), theInflation Reduction Act (IRA), and theCHIPS and Science Act, the administration is revitalizing American industrial capabilities. These efforts target critical sectors such as semiconductors and electric vehicles, aiming to diminish reliance on foreign manufacturing hubs and secure the economic benefits—such as job creation and technological advancements—within the U.S.[613]
The emphasis on developing domestic sources of critical minerals and investing in local battery production is a strategic move towards resource independence, aligning with economic nationalism. This approach aims to reduce vulnerabilities in global supply chains by sourcing essential raw materials domestically. In the energy sector, substantial funding for clean energy projects and infrastructure seeks to achieve energy sovereignty, lessening reliance on foreign oil and gas. These investments support environmental goals while enhancing national security and economic resilience, highlighting a commitment to economic nationalism by prioritizing domestic self-sufficiency and bolstering national infrastructure.[614]
The administration has reinforced the"Buy American" campaign, promoting policies that prioritize the procurement of American-made goods in federal contracts. This has led to tensions with trade partners who view these measures as protectionist.[615]
A 100-day supply chain review was initiated to identify vulnerabilities in key sectors, including semiconductors, rare earth minerals, and pharmaceuticals. This review aims to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers, particularly from strategic competitor nations like China.[616]
The Biden administration's emphasis on economic nationalism has led to tensions with several U.S. allies, particularly in Europe. TheEuropean Union has expressed significant concerns over the protectionist measures in theInflation Reduction Act, which they argue undermine free trade principles and could harm European industries. In response to these measures, the European Commission has proposed the Net Zero Industry Act as part of theEuropean Green Deal to counter U.S. policies. This act aims to boost the EU's green technology sector and reduce reliance on U.S. imports by promoting domestic production and innovation within Europe.[617]
Countries affected by the new tariffs and trade barriers have sought to negotiate with the U.S. while also looking to strengthen their own economic defenses. This has led to a series of bilateral and multilateral trade discussions aimed at mitigating the impact of U.S. economic nationalism. For example, nations such asJapan andSouth Korea have engaged in talks with the U.S. to secure more favorable trade terms and ensure continued access to the American market. Additionally, these countries are investing in their domestic industries to reduce their dependency on U.S. goods and protect their economies from future trade disruptions.[618]
The Biden administration's focus on rebuilding domestic industries and securing supply chains has raised concerns about potentialtrade wars and long-term impacts on global trade dynamics. While American manufacturers and workers have largely welcomed these policies, global trade partners worry that these protectionist measures could lead to retaliatory tariffs and a fragmentation of global trade networks. This shift could result in decreased international trade volumes and increased costs for consumers and businesses worldwide, as countries implement their own protective measures in response to U.S. policies.[619]
Despite the protectionist measures, the U.S. continues to experience significanttrade deficits, particularly with China. Efforts to reduce these deficits through tariffs have had mixed results, often leading to retaliatory measures from trade partners.
The U.S. policies emphasizing domestic production have led to notable shifts in global supply chains, driven largely by the need to mitigate risks associated withU.S.-China trade tensions and rising protectionism. Companies are increasingly relocating manufacturing to regions less impacted by these tensions, such as North America or Southeast Asia, fostering diversification and resilience in their supply networks. This strategic shift moves away from the"just-in-time" model, which relies on minimal inventory, towards a "just-in-case" approach that maintains larger inventories to buffer against disruptions, enhancing overall supply chain stability.[620]
By channeling substantial funds through initiatives such as theCHIPS and Science Act, the U.S. aims to reclaim leadership in critical sectors such assemiconductors andsustainable energy. These investments are designed to enhance domestic production and counter China's technological advancements, emphasizing research and development (R&D) with billions committed to establishing entities including the National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC) to drive innovation and workforce development. Additionally, the creation of regional technology hubs accelerates growth in sectors such asartificial intelligence,biotechnology, andquantum computing, ensuring that technological advancements benefit communities nationwide. This comprehensive approach not only strengthens U.S. economic and national security but also aligns with broader foreign policy objectives to build technological alliances, reaffirming the U.S.'s influential position on the world stage.[621]
The State Department has gestured toward the practice of 'friendshoring', or cultivating investment partnerships with allied countries seeking to develop their own tech sectors. For example, it has awarded $200 million in partnerships, to academia and foreign companies as of July 2024[update] under the Act's International Technology Security and Innovation Fund. The State Department has partnered with the governments ofCosta Rica,Panama,Vietnam,Indonesia, thePhilippines andMexico to distribute these funds, for technology incubation purposes.[622] The State Department has also brokered an agreement known as theMinerals Security Partnership withAustralia,Canada,Estonia,Finland,France,Germany,India,Japan,Norway,South Korea,Sweden, theUnited Kingdom, and European Union, to strengthen investments in raw minerals.[623][624] The State Department has also continued to grow the number of parties to theArtemis Accords, non-binding codes of conduct forMoon landings andlunar resources in support of the Act'sArtemis program, to 43.[625][626]
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According to right-leaning defense policy analystKori Schake of theAmerican Enterprise Institute, Biden's foreign policy is "a mess" that has "failed to match ends and means".[627]
In conservative academicWalter Russell Mead's opinion, Biden "underestimated the seriousness of the threat to the American led world system and misunderstood its causes". Contrary to Biden's stated goals, "Russia isn't parked, Iran isn't pacified, and both are coordinating policies with China", which is increasingly aggressive. The "wishful thinking" and "strategic incompetence" is thought to be not Biden's alone, but a "generational failure of the bipartisan foreign policy establishment.[628]
A mid-term "report card" was published byForeign Policy magazine, consisting of surveys of 20 "experts" from the magazine's staff, universities, and mainstream think tanks, using American schools' letter grades. According to the magazine, Biden received two "A-"s on Russian relations from authorAngela Stent and Liana Fix of theCouncil on Foreign Relations; two "B"s on Indo-Pacific relations fromBonnie S. Glaser of theGerman Marshall Fund and Michael J. Green of theUniversity of Sydney; a "D" on Middle East relations fromLina Khatib ofChatham House and a "B-" fromSteven A. Cook of the CFR; a "B+" on Global South engagement fromC. Raja Mohan of theAsia Society Policy Institute and a "C-" from Kamissa Carrera visiting at theUnited States Institute of Peace; two "A-"s on upholding existing alliances from former NATO SecretaryAnders Fogh Rasmussen and Stacie Pettyjohn of theCenter for a New American Security; a "B-" on defense policy from Schake and a "C-" from Bryan Clark of theHudson Institute; two "B-"s on global economic policy from economistEswar Prasad ofCornell University and journalistEdward Alden visiting atWestern Washington University; a "B+" on climate and energy policy fromTed Nordhaus of theBreakthrough Institute and an "A" fromAlice C. Hill of the CFR; two "incomplete"s on immigration policy from former Mexican foreign ministerJorge Castañeda Gutman and entrepreneurVivek Wadhwa; and two "C+"s on human rights promotion fromKenneth Roth formerly ofHuman Rights Watch and Emma Ashford ofThe Stimson Center.[28]
Biden's worldview is rooted in mid-twentieth century liberal internationalism, American exceptionalism, and pragmatism.
engaged in a subsidies race
America's oldest ally, France, recalled its ambassador to the United States on Friday in an unprecedented show of anger
The primary effort the IC uncovered revolved around a narrative-that Russian actors began spreading as early as 2014-alleging corrupt ties between President Biden, his family, and other US officials and Ukraine.
In particular, Sweden functions as Protective Power for the United States ... including consular responsibility for citizens.
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