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US Security Policy Under Biden
President Joe Biden’s first priority upon taking office was to reassure U.S. allies of America’s ongoing security commitments, promising that “America is back.” Despite some missteps along the way, that effort has paid off during the current standoff with Russia over Ukraine. But Biden still has a lot of work to do when it comes to shoring up America’s security partnerships to deal with a rising China.
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US Security and Defense Policy
Biden has broadly outlined an early US security strategy that prioritizes diplomacy, evident in his early engagements with Iran, but that is still coming into focus. Meanwhile, he has called for a modernization of the US military, as well as topic-specific reviews on nuclear weapons, missile defense and the use of armed drones outside of active battlefields.
Military Alliances and Security Partnerships
On the security front, Biden’s sharpest break with his predecessor has been in working to restore and expand America’s military alliances and partnerships. Gone are the harsh tone and public criticisms of allies that characterized the Trump era. In their place is a more traditional approach to key partners in Europe and Asia, as well as efforts to solidify emerging partnerships with countries wary of China’s rise, particularly India.
The US commitment to Taiwan, whether in Biden’s comment in Tokyo or in the Taiwan Relations Act’s defense clause, is neither ironclad nor predefined. But this is not an anomaly.
Military Interventions—and Withdrawals
Having closed the debate on America’s military engagement in Afghanistan, Biden must now decide what to do about the other ongoing deployments of US troops. Trump twice attempted to withdraw US troops from Syria, only to reverse course after an outcry from within his own administration and the Republican Party. Biden will have to decide whether to maintain—or expand—the light-footprint American force that remains there.
