President of the United States, Joe Biden, will tour Asia to talk with allies, including a face-to-face conversation with Xi Jinping.
The foreign dignitary plans for a series of essential conferences with his allies in the East. Biden will focus on some topics during the trip, such as combating China’s planned rise in power and the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. Biden anticipates a wider audience following his excellent outcome in the midterm polls.
“It will give Biden a feeling that he has maybe a little bit of wind at his back. Republicans look to have a margin in the House of Representatives. But, still, it was less of a loss than I think many had expected for the Democrats,” said Zack Cooper, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.
It would worry his allies if Democrats suffered a crushing loss in the 2022 elections. Donald Trump, who opposes being “too friendly” with other Eastern nations, is likely to run again if the Republicans control the House and the Senate. However, Biden has grown more confident in speaking to the world community after the Democratic Party achieved positive results in the election.
“So, while the American voters don’t vote on foreign policy issues, there’s no doubt that this result will help Biden in his relations with the rest of the world,” said Ivo Daalder, US NATO ambassador during the Obama administration.
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Biden scheduled to meet with Xi
He claims that Xi and Biden’s encounter won’t affect Biden’s stance on Taiwan. Following Nancy Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan, a tense situation ensued. However, Biden promised he would speak with Xi and that the issue still needed to be handled. The German Marshall Fund of the United States Asia program director, Bonnie Glase, noted that reconciling with Xi proved difficult.
“They haven’t shown any will to do anything with this administration, partly because they think this administration is implacably hostile toward them,” he said.
But Biden was clear that his trip’s purpose was to establish some boundaries with the Eastern powerhouse.
“I’ve told them I’m looking for competition, not conflict. And so what I want to do with him when we talk is lay out what each of our red lines is. Understand what he believes to be in the critical national interest of China. What I know to be the critical interest of the United States. And to determine whether or not they conflict with one another,” the president said.
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Russia and the G-20
To address critical issues affecting the global community, the president will also attend the G-20. But he anticipates that Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, won’t be present. Nevertheless, Biden asserts that the conflict has had a significant global impact, so he would continue to urge to end hostilities between the two nations.
“We will be unapologetic in calling out Russia for its brutal war. And we will also work closely with our partners to address the impacts of the war,” said a Biden official.
“We know the issues that the G-20 faces: the big themes of this meeting are energy security and food security. And those issues both, of course, touch on the war in Ukraine. So even if Vladimir Putin is not there, his spirit is hovering over the G-20,” added Melinda Haring from the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center.
Opinions expressed by Texas Today contributors are their own.
